


Road to Survival

by androgynousclintbarton



Category: Naruto
Genre: Blood, Fluff and Angst, M/M, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-12-02
Updated: 2020-11-19
Packaged: 2021-02-17 23:15:55
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 17
Words: 48,170
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21651358
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/androgynousclintbarton/pseuds/androgynousclintbarton
Summary: Maito Gai has seen the horrors his friend has suffered, and he recognizes the path that Kakashi is headed down. When no one else will listen to his pleas to help Kakashi, he's forced to take matters into his own hands.
Relationships: Hatake Kakashi/Maito Gai | Might Guy
Comments: 50
Kudos: 213





	1. Decisions

It had been weeks since he last saw Kakashi, far too many for his comfort. It left him no chance to check in on his friend and make sure that he was doing ok.

That he was doing more than just surviving.

He had hoped the next time he saw kakashi, there would be more colour in the man's face. More life in his body.

Luck wasn't on his side today. Instead, he found himself looking at what was essentially a zombie. There was no life left in Kakashi’s body, his eyes were tired and dull, and his left arm was drenched in dry crusty blood. The sight was horrifying. 

"Kakashi!" He rushed forward, catching the other boy when his knees buckled and pulling him close to his body. It hurt, seeing his best friend in so much pain, covered in so much blood.

What mission could be worth Kakashi's life? And why couldn't it be someone else. Someone who wasn't on a crash course towards death? Why did it always have to be Kakashi?

Kakashi's body was limp as he lifted him up into his arms, his rising and falling chest the only sign of any life at all. He needed to get him to the hospital, but once that was done he had another stop to make.

* * *

With Kakashi safely tucked away in a hospital bed being carefully watched by the doctors, Gai made his way to his next destination.

He didn't bother to knock on the door to the hokage's office, there was no point in being nice anymore. Nice had gotten him nowhere with the older man, it had only ever led to calm 'no's and more eyerolls than Gai could count. 

The door slammed open, making the small team of Genin currently standing in front of the hokage with their sensei jump in their spots.

He would feel bad for scaring them, they hadn't done anything wrong, but he was too angry. Too tired. Too done. 

"Gai…" Lord Third sounded as bored as ever by his intrusion "is there a reason you've decided to interrupt my meeting?"

"They can get another mission from you later." He snapped, his anger seeping through every word. The Hokage sat up straight in his chair and examined him, making note of the way Gai stood, and how his fingers curled into fists so tight that his knuckles had started to lose colour. 

Lord third seemed to regard him for a second before waving off the new team standing in front of him "You're dismissed." He stated calmly "return tomorrow for your next mission."

"Y.. yes sir." The other Jonin bowed quickly before rushing his team past gai and out the door, his eyes meeting Gai's for just a second before he turned his attention away, obviously scared by what he had seen.

"I just got news of Kakashi's return." He seemed uninterested with having this conversation, but Gai wouldn't give up. He couldn't 

If he did, he risked losing Kakashi forever. 

"You need to take him out of Anbu" he stated firmly. He couldn't make it a request anymore, his requests were always ignored and denied. They didn't matter to the older man.

"Kakashi Hatake is one of my best Anbu Shinobi." The hokage responded in the usual calm tone. A tone that told Gai that the topic wasn't up for debate.

"He's also on a suicide path!" He snapped, slamming his hands down on the giant wooden desk in front of him and watching as it snapped it in half under his strength "if you keep working him like this, he's going to die."

"You know the job of a shinobi." He did. He knew it better than most people because of his dad, but that didn't mean…

It couldn't mean that Kakashi's life...that anyone's life was of so little value that their mental health shouldn't be taken into consideration. 

"Just...some time." He begged, unwilling to leave without something. Some sort of promise for Kakashi's safety "He needs time. He needs to heal after everything he has been through."

"Our strongest shinobi have seen the worst of the world and continue to work." The hokage responded in that same, annoying calm tone. "And they will continue to do their job no ma…"

"He is 16!" Gai snapped "does that mean nothing to you? Are your missions so important you will ask someone who isn't legally allowed to drink, to die for our village when what he needs is help!?" 

Finally, the Hokage stood up from his Chair to face him, his shoulders squared off and ready for a fight "Kakashi Hatake is just fine. I have had people keep an eye on him, as did Minato…"

"And you don't think for a second they're lying to you?" Gai growled "that they're hiding his illness away so you don't take him away?"

"I trust my Shinobi with my life." Lord Third responded sternly "Now, this is the last I want to hear of this. Kakashi will heal and he will go back out on mission's once i deem him fit for them."

"And when he doesn't come back home one day, I hope you know it's your fault." Gai growled, turning his back on the older man and leaving the room without another word. There was nothing else to say, not to someone who wouldn't listen.

He'd have to take this issue directly to Kakashi.

* * *

The hospital room was quiet. There had been no other visitors since Gai had gotten back, no one to check up on Kakashi. To make sure that he was still alive and stable. 

Did the entire village not care? Or did they just not know? 

For the first time ever, Gai could understand Asuma's frustrations with his father. His issues with the Hokage that had lead to him showing up at Gai's apartment with an anger Gai had never seen in his friends eyes before. 

If Asuma couldn't get through to his own father, how had Gai ever hoped to do so? 

A tiny groan pulled him out of his thoughts, his eyes snapping up towards the other man and watching as Kakashi opened his good eye slowly and examined his situation. 

There was a flicker of something bright, maybe even happiness, in that soft black eye when he noticed Gai sitting by his side. 

"Gai…" he reached out instantly, placing a hand on Kakashi's shoulder to stop him when he tried to sit up "did i…"

"You made it home before you passed out." Gai confirmed with a soft smile. "And you've only been out for a day."

"And you're not on a mission?" He averted his eyes, unsure how to explain to Kakashi how much he had upset the Hokage. How he had been placed on temporary leave until the older man figured out how to deal with his apparent insubordination. 

It had been a hard hit to his pride, getting the news while he waited for Kakashi to wake up. But he wasn't going to apologize when he knew he was right. 

"I told them I wasn't taking one till you were better," He lied, and he knew he was caught immediately when Kakashi narrowed his eye towards him, but he said nothing so Gai figured it was a lie he was going to be allowed to get away with. "How...how are you feeling?"

Kakashi gave his shoulders a shrug, his usual cool dismissive attitude taking over once again. "I'm tired, but it'll go away." He assured his friend "and my wounds seem to have been healed already."

"The doctor's here are top notch." Gai beamed with pride "we...we should get some gyoza when they discharge you. We haven't had much time to hang out lately."

"I might have time." Kakashi seemed to think it over for a moment "but that depends on Lord third. If he has another mission for me…" he cut himself short when he saw Gai twisting his fingers into the bright green fabric of his spandex. "Gai…"

"Don't go…" the words were weak, and he was sure Kakashi would have had trouble hearing them had there been any other noise in the room. "Please, don't go on any more Anbu missions…"

"Gai, it's my job." Kakashi started to argue, frowning when his friend only seemed to get more upset "what's wrong? Did something happen?"

Gai gave his head a violent shake, the anger and hurt boiling up inside of him. Why was Kakashi so blind, why did he think he had to do everything he was told without question? Without getting to have a say in the matter?

"You've been a good soldier for years, for longer than any of us." He argued, trying desperately to wipe away the tears from his face "you've done so much for this village, lost so much...just for once can't you think about yourself first?" 

No answer followed. Between the two of them, the only sound that could be heard was the soft sob's that Gai couldn't hold back. 

He snapped when the silence continued for too long "Why do you have to be so...selfless!?" He demanded "why can't you do something for yourself for once? The village will continue to stand without you for a few days, or even a week!"

"What's the point?" His heart stopped. How could anyone be around Kakashi for any amount of time and miss that raw hurt in his voice? That desperation that hid behind every word "there's only one good end for a true shinobi."

"I thought you didn't want to end up like your dad…" he could tell that his words had cut deep, the pain in Kakashi's face was evident. "How is it any different? getting yourself killed on a mission?" 

"It's not like I'm planning to stab myself while my kid walks into the house!" Kakashi snapped angrily, throwing his blanket back and moving to stand up only to find Gai standing directly in his way, "It's my life Gai. I'll do with it as I please."

"And I'm supposed to just accept that?" He growled, leaning forward just enough so that he could meet Kakashi's eye "i'm supposed to sit here and wait for the day you don't come home? The day you just collapse out there and die?"

"Why does it matter to you?" Kakashi stood to face his friend, wobbling a bit when his body protested the movement. "If I die or not, what do you lose? My presence wouldn't be missed!"

His heart broke. Did Kakashi really think so little of himself? "Is that what those so called teammates of yours have you believing?" His anger dissipated, replaced by confusion and sorrow "Do you honestly think…"

"Everyone thinks it Gai." There was a hint of hurt in those words, one Gai knew his friend wouldn't let anyone else hear. A hurt that was visible only to him. "I know what they say, I know what they think. No one would miss 'Cold Blooded Kakashi' if I dropped dead tomorrow."

Gai didn't have words to respond with, his heart hurt too much. Instead, he slowly reached down and carefully undid the headband that always sat around his waist, watching as Kakashi's eyes followed his hand and watched while he folded up the soft red fabric and held the headband out to Kakashi. 

"Gai, what are you," he grunted when the other man shoved the headband into his hands "Gai…"

"If that's how you feel...if you honestly think this village cares so little for you, then I want nothing to do with it." His heart hurt as he spoke. He loved Konoha, even after everything that villagers had said and done to him and his father, it was his home. But he couldn't call a place home if it made his best friend think so little of himself. "I won't be a part of a place that allows you to think…that your only way to escape your sadness and hurt is to die. That's exactly what they did to your dad and I can't…"

His headband clattered to the floor, and he almost missed the moment when Kakashi's legs started to give out under him. 

Instantly, he reached out and caught the other man in his arms, sighing when Kakashi's head fell forward into his shoulder. "You shouldn't be standing." He whispered, reaching down and lifting Kakashi's legs up off of the ground before laying him back down in the bed "stay in bed and rest." 

He turned to walk away, sure that the conversation was over, when a hand reached out to take hold of his. 

"Don't leave…" it was a soft request, one Gai knew Kakashi wouldn't make to anyone else. He was too proud for that. "Gai…"

"I don't want you to think that you need to die.." he whispered "that it's your only escape from your pain. That you have.." he choked back the words "you're my eternal rival, that means forever. Forever isn't supposed to end when you're 16…"

Kakashi's hand twitched against his, but it didn't give up its hold for a second. 

"I don't want you to end up like your dad." He continued, allowing his own fingers to wrap protectively around Kakashi's hand "I don't want this village...this leadership, to take another kind soul away because they believe it's worth it for the greater good." 

"Kind…" kakashi scoffed at the word, wincing when Gai turned back around and glared at him. "it's not a word most people would describe me with, you know as well as I do."

"But it's true." Insisted Gai "and it's because of poor leadership that people believe that. Leadership that tells everyone they have to act a certain way, be a certain shinobi, in order to be considered good. Minato senpai would have changed that. He would have made this village better!"

Kakashi lowered his eye at the mention of his Sensei. It hadn't been that long ago that they lost the fourth Hokage, and it was still a fresh wound in his heart. Another wound Kakashi had taken for the village, another pain he hid deep down inside of himself so that he could be the perfect shinobi.

The unbroken

The strong

The resilient. 

"He wanted you in Anbu so he could keep an eye on you." He whispered "he thought he could keep you safe, alive, if you were by his side. But now the third is using that decision to turn you into a weapon, and you've been a weapon for this village long enough. You've given up enough."

He blinked when kakashi extracted his hand slowly, thinking maybe he had upset his friend and preparing to backtrack when he saw him reaching up and removing the blue headband from around his forehead.

He didn't do anything with it, nothing special anyways, he just stared at it for a moment while it sat in his hands.

"I thought...that becoming a shinobi was the only way to prove i was different." Kakashi's pain dripped through every word he spoke. "That if I became a great shinobi, they'd stop seeing my dad. They'd stop seeing another failure."

"Neither of you were failures, Minato senpai told you that himself." Gai had been there that day, standing by Kakashi's side after he had come home with Rin's blood on his hands and a terror in his eyes that Gai had never seen before. 

He was certain that Kakashi was afraid, terrified even, that his Sensei might think differently of him after Rin's murder. That he might have become a shinobi his Sensei wanted nothing to do with. 

But Minato Senpai had assured him otherwise. He had promised Kakashi that he would never think any less of him, and that he was not the failure he seemed to think he was. He had even praised Kakashi for trying to save Rin, for going back for his teammate just like His Father and Obito had. 

All of that work on Kakashi's confidence and self worth had gone down the drain when Minato sensei died in the demon fox's attack. 

Kakashi had broken all over again, and the only people who seemed to care were Gai, Asuma and Kurenai. Well, he was sure others cared, they just knew better than to speak out.

Gai couldn't keep quiet though, he knew if he did, he risked losing Kakashi forever. 

"Maybe…" he spoke slowly, unsure if his current thought were something Kakashi would even want to hear. If it was even a good idea at all. Still, he knew he had to vocalize it. He had few other options left "Maybe this isn't the village for us."

Kakashi's head snapped up, his eyes wild with fear. "We can't...this is their Village. Dad, Dai, Minato Sensei, obito and Rin...we couldn't…"

He was right. No matter how angry Gai was, he couldn't betray the village that he had grown up in. Besides, there were few other villages that would even take a Taijutsu only Shinobi. 

"We don't have to betray the village." He corrected his friend weakly "maybe we just...shouldn't be here for a while."

Kakashi's eye went soft, searching Gai's face for a clue about what he was trying to say. 

"Maybe...maybe we should just leave. We don't have to become traitors, we don't have to fight the village and we can even come back one day when it's better. When things will change."

"When there's better leadership." Kakashi finished the sentence for him with a sigh "but they could list us as rogue Ninja. They could still put a bounty on us." 

"We'll just have to prove them wrong." Gai said with determination "we'll protect the village, the people who live here, we just won't do it as Leaf Shinobi. We won't wear those headbands until the village is going in a better direction. We won't be Shinobi of Konoha, more like...Guardians." 

Kakashi seemed to think about it for a second, his eyes scanning back down to the headband that still lay in his hand. 

"Guardians of Konoha…" he whispered to himself, a weak smile pulling at his lips as Gai watched him "i...i think i like that."


	2. Saying Goodbye

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gai and Kakashi make their way out of the village in the dead of night.

The wind chilled his bones, making it difficult to move in the darkness. He hated the cold, he always had. Warm summer day's were much preferable, but that wasn't an option for him here.

If he showed up to Kurenai's apartment in the middle of the day, everyone would notice, and he had very little time. He had left Kakashi just outside of the village under cover, hoping he wouldn't be found. The Anbu were skilled Shinobi though. If they noticed his disappearance from his hospital room they would go looking for him right away.

He had to be quick. 

The ledge of Kurenai's apartment window was easy to find with the decorative vase she kept her favorite plant in. His feet hit the edge easily and shifted so that he was facing the window. 

It was open, meaning Kurenai was awake. He'd have to be quiet so she didn't catch him.

He slipped through the window easily, shifting his feet just in time to avoid knocking over the picture frame the ledge. He wouldn't get very far if he went around breaking her things.

Once inside, he acted quickly and carefully placed the two headbands and the note Kakashi had written on Kurenai's bed and moved to leave.

"Gai?" He whirled around in his spot, looking at Kurenai in shock as she stood there in her sleep cloths with a tired look on her face, "What are you doing here?"

"I…" every alarm in his body was going off. Kakashi had told him not to be seen, even by Kurenai. If someone knew what they were doing, they would try to stop them, some may even try to kill them. 

When she didn't get an answer right away, Kurenai examined the room. She had obviously figured out that Gai's intention was to leave something behind for her to find, and she quickly spotted the two headbands with the note attached to them laying on her bed. 

"You...you're leaving?" There was a sadness in her eyes when she looked back at him, one Gai wished he could wash away by assuring her she was wrong.

But she wasn't, and he couldn't take that sadness away from her. All he could do was stand there silently, hoping she didn't try to make a scene or convince him to change his mind. 

He wouldn't, not if it meant keeping Kakashi safe. 

After a moment, Kurenai moved from her spot. Gai had thought she was heading for the note, intent on reading it before he left, but instead she stepped up right in front of him and reached out with both arms to pull him into a tight hug.

"Be safe." His heart broke when he heard the hurt in her voice, and he quickly wrapped his arms around her waist to return the hug "and keep him safe."

"I will." He promised softly, turning his head and pressing a gentle kiss to the side of his friends head "and we'll be back, i know we will."

She took a step back and smiled that beautiful smile of hers, the one that left no one questioning how Asuma had fallen in love with her so easily "We'll get drinks that day," She promised "Now get going. You shouldn't keep him waiting." 

"We'll see you later." He promised, flashing her his brightest smile and throwing up a quick thumbs up before heading back out the window. He still had to stop at his and Kakashi's apartments to grab some things before he could leave. 

"You had better be." Kurenai spoke to herself more than anything, watching as Gai clambered out the window and back into the darkness of the Konoha night. 

She was not looking forward to explaining this to Lord Third when he inevitably asked about their disappearance. At least Asuma had told his old man he was leaving, she doubted that Gai or Kakashi had decided to extend such kindness in their departure. 

* * *

It was easy enough to find Kakashi once he got back to the forest, shoving the bushes out of the way to see his friend propped up against the tree he had left him at, with a hand twisted into the fabric of his shirt as he tried to even out his breathing. 

He knew they should have waited until tomorrow night, but Kakashi had insisted they were more likely to be stopped if they risked waiting. 

Now he had to get Kakashi as far away from the village as possible before their disappearance was noticed, and he knew for a fact that Kakashi didn't have the strength to move himself. 

"You're late." It's more of a statement than an accusation, but Gai know's Kakashi looking for a reason "did you get caught?"

"Kurenai was home." He explained softly "she saw me on the way out, but don't worry," he smiled back towards his friend as he bend down in front of him and waited for Kakashi to shift forward and collapse against his back "she's not going to tell anyone. Not tonight anyways." 

"I hope you're right." Kakashi sighed against his back, allowing his arms to fall around Gai's neck as he was lifted off of the ground "where are we going?" 

"Not far." Promised Gai "there's a pretty thick forest close by we should be able to find cover in." 

"It should do for the night." With that said, Kakashi laid his head down against Gai's back and closed his eyes.

* * *

It felt like hours before Gai finally stopped moving, his feet landing easily on the ground while Kakashi opened his good eye to examine the area. 

"It's just for one night...hopefully." Gai seemed like he was trying to calm any worries that Kakashi may be having about their current situation, but it wasn't like they both hadn't had to sleep outside before. It was a regular occurrence with missions. 

"We'll do something about more permanent housing later." He knew he'd have to let go of Gai soon and lay down on the ground, or probably propped up against a tree, but for now he simply tightened his grip around the other man's neck slightly and laid his head back down. 

He wasn't sure why, but he always felt safe when he was with Gai. Safer than he had ever felt with anyone else, except maybe his Dad. 

"A small cabin in the woods." He was surprised to find himself laughing at Gai's comment, but it was a nice thought. A small place, away from all the commands and orders of Konoha. A place of their own. "We'll make sure it has a good kitchen."

"We are not having curry every night." Kakashi grumbled as Gai stopped beside a large tree and turned around, carefully lowering himself so that Kakashi could move off of his back and against the temporary shelter.

The cold wind hit him almost immediately after he let go of Gai's neck and fell back against the large oak tree, sending shivers throughout his body and leaving him to wrap his arms around himself in a poor attempt to gain some warmth again. 

"I'll grab the sleeping bags," Gai smiled, dropping the bag off of his front and detaching both of the sleeping bags from the bottom straps. "We should get some different cloths soon as well."

"You grabbed some money right?" A sigh left his throat when Gai nodded his confirmation "it should be enough to keep us going for a while."

"It seems like you've barely used any of your money." Where he expected Gai to throw him a judgmental look, Kakashi instead found himself looking at soft, sad eyes. He hated it.

He had never wanted pity or concern over him. Strong Shinobi didn't need any of that, but Gai had always insisted on caring about him no matter what he said to try and get him to stop.

To force his friend back, before something terrible happened to him as well. 

"We can go into Tonika tomorrow for supplies." He offered as a suggestion, moving his back off of the tree just enough so that Gai could wrap his sleeping back around his shoulders. "Maybe we can find a contractor there as well."

"I'm not sure how big of a place we can get." Gai sighed. Kakashi could only assume he had already looked through their joint savings already, at least enough to have an idea of how much they had. 

"It doesn't have to be huge." Kakashi assured his friend, leaning his head back against the tree and allowing his eyes to slide closed once more. He needed to sleep, to regain his strength so that he could help Gai in the morning, instead of being a burden. "Kitchen, bedroom. Maybe some extra space for a living room if we have enough."

He didn't need to open his eyes to know that Gai was looking at him, examining him to make sure that he was comfortable. 

"Besides," he shifted in his spot when Gai finally finished what he was doing and took a spot beside him, allowing the tree to hold them both up as he wrapped his own sleeping bag around himself "we might still be able to get some missions. Small things we can do for people...it could help us save up for a better place."

Once Gai had finished settling into his spot, Kakashi moved back to his side and allowed his head to drop to his shoulder, sighing when he felt Gai's hand sneaking under his sleeping bag and grabbing hold of his. 

"Thank you." He didn't need Gai to explain why he was saying those words, the worry had been evident on his face when he talked about Kakashi coming home dead, or not coming home at all.

What else was he supposed to do? He could be an ass, but the last thing he ever wanted to do was hurt Gai more. Others did enough of that without his help. 

"Anytime." He whispered, allowing the heavy pull of sleep to finally claim him, hoping for once that his nightmares wouldn't wake him up. 

* * *

It was odd, seeing Kakashi so unsettled and restless in his sleep. Whenever he was awake he was the definition of cool and collected, not allowing a drop of emotion to seep out when he was in public.

The perfect shinobi, by others standards. 

But now, with sleep taking over and the darkness of night to cover him, Kakashi kicked out to an imaginary enemy, his hand twisting around a Tanto that wasn't actually there. Every bone in his body shivered against Gai, and the soft whisper of Rin's name was the only thing that left his lips.

He was certain that the only reason he didn't see tears running down his companions face was due to the darkness that covered them both, but he didn't dare reach out to find out if he was correct. It was a risk, one that could wake Kakashi from his nightmares and send him back into the shell he always hid away in. 

No, Kakashi needed his sleep, even if it was rough and unsettled. Instead, Gai simply gave the hand he had taken hold of a while ago a gentle squeeze, and watched as Kakashi turned his face into his shoulders, hiding his fear and hurt away from the rest of the world like always. 

He wished there was more he could do for his friend, some sort of assurance that he'd never have to face such horrors again, but they had left the village.

They hadn't quit being shinobi and he knew for a fact that neither of them ever would.

Missions could still happen, horrors could still be seen. All he could hope to do was protect Kakashi from as much of it as possible. It was still more than he had ever been allowed to do for his friend in Konoha. 


	3. Tonika

Tonika was a quiet village compared to Konoha, the streets only half as full of people as their home. 

The people themselves were very much the same, some kind with helpful suggestions on where to find supplies, others with judgmental looks saved for the two Shinobi as they walked down the street.

It didn't matter to Gai either way, he had gotten used to such looks growing up, but beside him he could see Kakashi's shoulders hunching inwards, a small defensive movement he always made when he felt like he was being watched. When too many eyes were on him. 

"Come on." He reached out towards Kakashi, taking hold of his arm and heading down another path that they had been pointed down for fruits and vegetables. 

"How much longer do we have to be here?" He could hear the strain in Kakashi's voice. He was on edge, worried about Konoha Shinobi showing up at any moment to drag them home for desertion, or worse.

Gai shivered. He hated the thought of their allies hunting them down to kill them. They hadn't actually done anything wrong, and they wouldn't. 

They weren't orochimaru, they were their own Shinobi. Shinobi looking for a better life, one where maybe they mattered. 

"We'll pick up some food and then we can head out." He promised, throwing his friend that blinding smile that he knew always relaxed Kakashi's nerves, and as always it worked like a charm. Kakashi's shoulders finally relaxed, and he stopped struggling against Gai's pull and decided instead to follow his lead. "We can make plans for a contractor while we make dinner, or perhaps we can look into building a house ourselves?"

"The last thing I need is to see how terrible you are at construction." It was a playful jab, one Gai knew meant to cause no harm but to poke fun at him. "I remember quite well how that contest went."

"Y...you didn't do much better!" He protested, knowing it was a lie even as he spoke. Kakashi had made a perfect bird house as per the guidelines of their contest that day, where as Gai's had been...far less than adequate. "Fine, we'll stick to finding a contractor."

"I would prefer that a lot, thank you." For the first time in two days, Kakashi brushed his shoulder against Gai's playfully. A move he would usually only make in private where no one that knew them could see.

It probably helped that no one in this village knew them, or at least the chances of them being recognized were much smaller than back in Konoha. 

"Eggplant." Kakashi declared out of nowhere "we have to get some eggplant."

"I think you would wither away and die if we failed to get you some eggplant." Gai chuckled, his eyes lighting up when he saw the small shop they were looking for tucked away in the corner of the ally, their fruits and vegetables displayed proudly outside. 

"Oh…" he didn't bother to stop his friend when he bolted forward, stopping directly in front of the heaping pile of eggplants on display and searching through it for the perfect vegetables. 

"We'll need to hurry with that contracter." Joked Gai, taking his place back at Kakashi's side and watching as he examined the eggplants carefully "it won't do to have to come in every day for supplies, and I doubt we'll want to risk hiding a lot of food."

"It would be preferable not to have to dig up a hole every night for our food." Kakashi nodded in agreement, holding up yet another eggplant and examining it. After a moment, he stood up straight and held the vegetable out towards Gai "though even with a contractor it will be a few days before we get a place that has a functioning kitchen and everything."

"Cooking over a fire isn't that bad." Gai stated, his eyes glancing over to some of the carrots he had found himself standing beside "and we both know how to cook, so that's not an issue."

"That is true." Kakashi returned to his side, watching as he started to pick out some carrots "but still, the quicker we get a place up and running the better."

Gai couldn't disagree with that. Having a working stove and walls to cover them from the cold would always be a bonus, and the faster they got them the better.

He was going to have to ask around about a contractor before they left. Hopefully a few extra minutes wouldn't set Kakashi on edge. 

Finishing up with his selection, Gai headed towards the counter to pay, well aware of the fact that Kakashi was hovering close behind. 

He'd call it an adorable trait, but he knew it was from years of being paid a little too much attention by the villagers in Konoha. Kakashi preferred his privacy, and he always seemed to know he could get it as long as Gai was around. 

It didn't take much time to pay, and Gai tried his best not to laugh when Kakashi scooped up the bags and started to carry them away, apparently determined to get out of the crowded streets as soon as possible. 

"Hey, slow down." He ran after his friend, laying a hand on his shoulder as soon as he had caught up "We should really ask about a contractor at least."

"We've been in town for two hours." Kakashi's voice was tired, likely a bad mix of being over stimulated by all of the noise and people, and the chakra exhaustion that was still very prominent even after a good night's sleep. 

Still, it wouldn't do any good to just leave, but it also wouldn't be good for Kakashi to push his limits too far when he was still recovering. 

"I'll ask around then." He decided, handing over the bag of spices and meats he had been carrying. "Meet me by the village gates. You can relax there."

He was sure that Kakashi was about to argue, not wanting to split up so soon after they had left Konoha, but he didn't give his friend the chance. Before a word could leave Kakashi's mouth, he had disappeared into the crowds to start his search.

* * *

The room was quiet, the news settling into each of their minds as Danzo watched them. 

It was hard to believe, hearing Kakashi being called a deserter. A traitor. He had always been so kind and had gone out of his way to help Yamato when he had no reason to. 

He couldn't imagine what had gone through Kakashi's mind when he decided to leave the village. To desert his post as one of the Hokage's elite Shinobi. 

"You've all had time to process the news." His eyes snapped up, focusing on Danzo once again when he continued to speak. "Now, I have a mission for you."

Something in the pit of his stomach turned. He hated the way Danzo had said that. The calmness that followed such harsh news. 

"I thought we didn't consider anyone a traitor unless they tried to harm the village." Yamato was glad when one of the others spoke up, asking the question that was bubbling in the back of his mind. 

"Kakashi Hatake is one of Konoha's elites, and Might Gai is not to be taken lightly either." He shivered when he heard the anger dripping in Danzo's words. "We cannot stand by and allow them to become a threat to Konoha. They must be eliminated before that is possible."

His chest hurt as he tried to process what Danzo had said.

They were supposed to Kill Kakashi...to take his life.

Was he even capable of doing such a thing to his friend?

"Kinoe." He looked up, only now realizing that everyone else had already vacated the room to prepare for their mission. The blood in his veins ran cold when Danzo held out two scrolls towards him. Dead body scrolls, meant for bringing their targets back. "Make sure no damage comes to the sharingan"

Of course that was a worry for Danzo. He had always been obsessed with the Sharingan, even Kakashi's would be a target for him.

He reached out slowly, trying his best to keep his hands from shaking as he took the scrolls from the older Ninja and examined them.

Was this something he could do? 

Murder wasn't an issue, he had done more than enough of that since he had been taken into Root, but Kakashi…

He gave his head a shake. 

Kakashi was a deserter. Someone who had left his duties and responsibilities behind for...for what?

What reason did he even have to leave the village? He had never spoken of doing such a thing before, though Yamato could guess there was a lot Kakashi hadn't told him.

He certainly hadn't told him about this 'friend' of his, Might Gai. That was a new name Yamato was hearing, one that made his blood boil. 

"I will ensure it is kept safe." He bowed his head, his decision made as he turned on his heel and headed off towards the change rooms. 

It wasn't his favorite scenario, but he had a mission to complete and Danzo did not accept failure. 

* * *

Leaves crunched under Kakashi's feet, a noise he usually would worry about making and giving away his position, except this time he wanted someone to find him.

Specifically, he wanted Gai to find him. 

He had tried waiting for his friend inside of the village, but the noise had gotten to be too much. Too loud, too constant. It had made his head pound, leaving him with a headache that made him nauseous. If he was attacked right now, he'd be useless.

Suddenly every alarm in his body went off, and his eyes started to dart around the area. It had been fine to leave the village for peace and quiet in Konoha, the likelihood of being attacked near his home village was small. But this wasn't Konoha. This was Tonika, a small village populated by regular people that likely had its fair share of attackers and raiders.

And that wasn't even touching on the issue of Kakashi and Gai being deserters. Ditchers to their home village, likely already being put on a kill list by someone, if not by the Hokage himself. 

He gave his head a shake. The Third Hokage was a jerk, always pushing his shinobi too far and expecting too much, but he wasn't heartless. His own Son had left the village much the same as Kakashi and Gai, and he had never put a kill order out for him. He wasn't likely to do it with Kakashi and Gai unless they proved themselves to be threats to the village, which wasn't a goal for either of them.

Danzo was more likely to be a problem in this area. Ruthless, always doing what he wants to get what he wants. Kakashi had already proven to be a thorn in his side, something he was personally proud of, so it wasn't out of the question that he would put Kakashi and by extension Gai on a kill list. 

He felt like an idiot. He had put Gai in danger leaving the village, he may have even put a target on his back.

A part of him wanted to ask what the hell he had been thinking, but he already knew the answer to that question. Gai had looked so lost and upset, even scared, Kakashi couldn't say no. The pain in his chest had been too much when he looked into those soft sad eyes, he was certain his heart would have broken if he had even attempted to talk Gai out of this crazy plan. 

Not that a part of him didn't agree with it though. He was tired, so tired after months of endless missions and little time to sleep or even process anything. Even Minato Sensei's death still felt fresh in his heart, and the Nine Tails attack had happened over 2 years ago. He wasn't sure how long he could keep going before his body gave up, and Gai's fear of him coming home dead, or not coming home at all, had been a thought on his mind as well, though admittedly he wasn't so averse to the idea. Even now, death seemed like a better option than living on as a friend killer, or possibly a traitor. 

"Hey." He stopped suddenly, glaring at the upside down figure of his best friend hanging from the tree he had been about to pass "you're thinking too much." 

"You know, 'thinking too much' is not something people usually say to me." He huffed "and where have you been? It has been two hours since we split?" 

Gai gave him an apologetic look. He likely knew how on edge Kakashi was since leaving the village. For some reason he always seemed to know how Kakashi was feeling. 

"Sorry." He smiled, releasing the chakra control at the base of his feet and doing a flip mid air so that he landed on his feet in front of Kakashi "i got a little side tracked."

"Side tracked!?" Kakashi glared at the other man, anger burning deep down inside of him. Who the hell could possibly get side tracked when they didn't know if they were even safe or not? "What could possibly be so important that you got side tracked at a time like this?"

"You know how i am." Gai gave his shoulders a tiny shrug, laughing when Kakashi continued to glare at him "I saw some shops."

"You never buy yourself anything." Kakashi protested, crossing his arms over his chest in annoyance "you always look, and you never buy anything."

"Well, I bought something today." As he spoke, Gai held up a small box that he had tucked under his arm and held it out towards Kakashi "i thought it would be useful for our mission."

Ok, this was all too much to process.

"Mission?" He narrowed his eyes, glaring at Gai and leaving the box hovering between them while he waited for an answer.

"Ya." Gai seemed to treat it as a non issue, which got on Kakashi's nerves more than the waiting or the side tracked shopping. "Oh, i guess i didn't explain yet."

"You haven't explained shit yet, no." He glanced down at the box still being held out towards him, but refused to take it. The explanation needed to come first before he accepted any gifts. 

Gai chuckled, apparently realizing what Kakashi was waiting for. "I was able to find a contractor pretty easily." He explained "there was one not too far from where we split up, so i decided to talk to them before coming back to meet you."

"And before a small shopping spree." Kakashi commented dryly "and i take it we didn't have enough money?"

"Actually he didn't want money." Gai gave his shoulders a shrug "when he realized I was a Shinobi he asked for a mission instead. Said he was going to go to Konoha tomorrow for help, but that would cost him money whereas this is more of a trade of services." 

It wasn't a bad idea. They needed to keep enough money to survive until they could figure out other ways to get paid, or until they could get missions that didn't impede with Konoha. Trading a completed mission for shelter was a win win situation on both sides. No one had to spend any money. 

"And the mission?" He pressed his friend for more information "what Rank would you put it?" 

Gai seemed to think about it for a second "About...B." he declared suddenly "it's just dealing with some loan sharks he got himself involved with."

A 'B' mission? He hadn't done a mission that easy in years. It would be a nice change of pace, though it might also be boring. Either way, completing it meant shelter for them. 

"Alright," he dropped his hands down from his chest and reached out to take the box that Gai was still holding out to him "and you thought this might help with the mission?" 

"Well…" a blush crept up Gai's face, an odd occurrence in Kakashi's experience. It was rare for Gai to get embarrassed. "I thought it would fit with you in general. It's your personality.

He couldn't decide what exactly Gai meant by that comment, though he doubted it meant anything bad. Gai was one of the few people who refused to view him as 'cold blooded' or 'ruthless' even though Kakashi himself knew that he was very capable of being both. 

The lid lifted off of the box easily, revealing a beautiful Tanto sitting perfectly on top of some decorative paper inside. It was the Tanto's handle that caught his attention though. Near the bottom of the blade was a beautiful carving of a small pug dog, something that reminded him of Pakkun. Something that easily explained how Gai saw the weapon and thought of him. 

"So…" he rolled his eyes when Gai closed the distance between them and looked down at the weapon still sitting in its box "do...do you like it?" 

A small smile pulled at his lips. Gai always loved showing his affections with presents, but Kakashi knew he wasn't the easiest person to buy for. He didn't like jewelry like Kurenai, and he didn't wear accessories like Genma and Ebisu. He was simple, not having any preference for any particular thing. 

But a Tanto, that was a different story. they were hardly ever found in Konoha since his father's death, as it was a weapon highly associated with Konoha's white fang. No one wanted to be found selling a weapon that reminded others of a failure.

The only Tanto Kakashi had seen in years was his father, and that had been sitting on his desk broken for years now. He hadn't been able to use it since he was 11. 

"I love it." He chuckled when Gai let out a sigh of relief.

"I haven't heard that laugh in forever." He glanced up from the Tanto, meeting Gai's eyes and allowing himself to reach out and place a hand in Gai's hair. He desperately wanted to close the rest of the distance and kiss Gai, but that was too much too quick. He wasn't ready for the risk of pushing his best friend away with his private feelings. 

Instead, he pressed their foreheads together and closed his eyes, feeling safer than he had in months as Gai's hand came down over his bicep "I love it, Turtle." 

He didn't need to open his eyes to know that Gai was smiling, he could tell that much from the way his friend gave his bicep a gentle squeeze. Gai was so much better at making sure Kakashi knew how he was feeling, what made him happy and what upset him. It was one of the things Gai had always been better at, and sometimes Kakashi wished he was capable of showing his emotions just as easily. 

"After this mission we should summon up Ningame and the hounds." He whispered, dropping his hand from Gai's hair and taking a step back "we still have to tell them everything."

"Who knows how they'll take the news." Gai sighed, his brows drawing together as he thought. Kakashi could only guess he was trying to figure out how exactly he was going to tell Ningame that they had left the village. "But you're right. Let's take care of that mission first. All we need to do to show it's done is get some sort of proof that they'll leave him alone."

"That shouldn't be too hard." Kakashi glanced back down at the new Tanto still sitting in its box, and carefully reaching in he wrapped his hand around the handle, smiling when his Chakra sparked to life around the cold metal of the blade. 

"I see you haven't lost your talent for making an already deadly weapon even more deadly?" Gai joked.

"And Let Asuma have all the fun?" He smiled, his eyes closing to show his joy at the playful jab from his friend "not a chance."

"You're right," Gai chuckled "he might get an ego if he's ever the only one who can infuse h is weapon with chakra."

Digging the sheath out of the box, Kakashi held the empty container out to his friend and waited for him to take it before putting his new Tanto inside and starting to set it up on his back. 

"It looks good." Gai commented as soon as the weapon was settled on Kakashi's back, easily within reach in the case of a fight "hopefully you don't need to use it on this mission."

Kakashi just smiled at that "I assure you, the first time I use this will be for a damn good reason." He promised softly. 


	4. Attack

Everyone was quiet, not a single word spoken as they searched the forest for clues of Kakashi and Gai's whereabouts. Kinoe was certain the same thought was going through all of their heads.

Kakashi was the hound. He was always the one who found people with his dogs and his own nose. That mixed in with the fact that he was also Anbu trained meant finding him was not going to be easy. 

Their main hope relied on Might Gai. A regular shinobi without the same level of training was more likely to make a mistake. They were sure to find some trace of him. 

His eyes scanned the area, searching for any sign of the two shinobi. Anything small that would give them a clue as to where they had been. 

"Kinoe!" Hr glanced up, narrowing his eyes as one of his comrades dropped from a tree and landed effortlessly beside him. "We got news of sightings in Tonika of a silver haired man with a scar over his eye."

That was Kakashi, it had to be. He likely hadn't been able to find anything to cover his damaged eye since leaving the village and he wouldn't be wearing his leaf village headband anymore. That would tell everyone who saw him that he was a shinobi. 

"They won't stay in the village long." He mused, more to himself than to anyone else. "But they'll likely stay close by."

"It's the closest place for supplies" his comrade agreed with a nod of her head "you don't think they'll try to head into the land of Rivers? Or the land of Wind?"

Yamato forced himself not to laugh at the thought of Kakashi making it all the way into the land of Wind. They hadn't been on a lot of missions together, but if there was one thing he knew about the hound it was that he absolutely hated the heat. 

Kakashi would make it into the land of wind and last five minutes before deciding to turn around. Unless his presence in the desert was necessary for a mission, he would not willingly go into such territory. 

"He'll stay in the land of fire." He assured his comrade "it's familiar territory. Easier for them to navigate and hide in." 

He cut the conversation off there, turning on his heel and heading in the direction towards Tonika. Even if Kakashi and his friend did stay in the area, there was still only a limited amount of time they had before the two would be set up and better prepared to defend themselves. If this mission was to go smoothly, they needed to catch them when they were still vulnerable. Sleeping out in the open at night, unable to eat proper meals, and while Kakashi was still healing from his chakra exhaustion. Anything that would give him and the others an advantage in the upcoming fight had to be utilized. Kakashi wasn't someone they would be able to fight easily if he was at full strength. 

It was better to get the fight over with before Kakashi was in prime condition again. It guaranteed an easier win and less Shinobi's losing their life. 

* * *

There hadn't been one second where Kakashi questioned how easy the mission would be, dealing with loan sharks and other scum like them had never been particularly hard, but looking at the scene in front of him now he really wondered how he was supposed to process the entire ordeal. 

Gai had left his side just a second ago, bolting forward and slamming the leader face first into the dirt after a particularly nasty jab aimed at his hair cut and worth as a shinobi. It was probably the hottest thing Kakashi had seen in awhile, though the way Gai was digging his foot into the back of the poor bastards neck was a very close second. 

"I think he's looking for an apology." He commented dryly. There was no real need to get involved himself, Gai was more than capable of taking care of the situation himself.

Besides, even after a good nights rest he knew his limits. His body was still screaming for more sleep, more down time to recharge and reach peak fighting condition again. If he wasn't needed to deal with the situation it was best to stay out of it and let Gai take care of everything. 

"Get off of me!" He watched as the guy clawed helplessly at Gai's leg, only managing to tug on the bright orange leg warmers in his attempt to get the foot off of his neck. 

"I'll get off when you agree to leave our client alone." It took a considerable amount of focus for Kakashi to not get hard at the sound of that determined angry voice. He heard it so rarely, but Gai's serious personality was one of his favorite things. 

Seeing the other men reaching for their weapon's, Kakashi held out a hand and focused his chakra on his palm, rolling his eyes when Gai glared over at him as electricity sparked to life in his palm. 

"Is this really a fight any of you want to have?" He asked with a bored tone. This was taking longer than it needed to, and he had much better things to do with his time. 

Sleep, for one. He's love to just go back to sleep. 

Thankfully, the tactic seemed to work. Every single weapon hit the ground, and he watched with amusement as everyone except the guy currently stuck under Gai's foot ran off. 

"Seems like your back up ran off." Gai sounded amused as he spoke, but his eyes continued to burrow into Kakashi angrily while he watched the electricity disappear from his palm slowly. "So...about that answer."

"Fine!" The guy screamed when Gai put just a little more pressure on his neck. Anymore pressure and Kakashi figured his friend would snap the bastards neck, which wasn't the goal this time.

Not that he would blame the other man. People like this weren't exactly good for society.

Making his way over to Gai's side, Kakashi knelt down beside the loan shark while his friend watched him carefully.

"He's going to release his grip now." He stated calmly, his voice as empty and bored as it always was when he was dealing with enemies or targets. People who he would rather not be wasting his time on. "But i'll give you two warnings. Try anything once he lets go, and he'll snap your neck."

He glanced up, smiling to himself when Gai shrugged his shoulders in response. Murder wasn't one of Gai's preferred methods when dealing with enemies, but he was more than capable of killing if the need arose. 

"Number two." He turned his attention back to the man still struggling to get the foot off of his neck "if we hear anything about you bothering anyone in the land of fire again, I'll personally make sure the last thing you see is my fist going through your chest."

He didn't wait for a response before standing up, he didn't need one. The man's actions would show him exactly what he needed to know. 

"Let him go." He looked over at Gai as he spoke, smiling when his friend examined him for a moment before taking his foot off of the man's neck and stepping back. 

Within seconds the man was scrambling to his feet and running off in the same direction where his people had gone just a few minutes ago. 

"So," he looked over at Gai "since when do you take offence to bowl cut jokes?" 

"It was more the jab about my skills as a shinobi that got to me." Gai gave his shoulders a shrug "and since when do you waste your chakra when you're still recovering?"

"It was just a little chidori." He argued "a scare tactic. Only an idiot would fight an attack like that when they can't use ninjutsu, genjutsu or taijutsu themselves." 

A hand came down on his shoulder, a little harder than he would have liked but he figured he deserved it for using chakra at all when he still wasn't fully healed. 

"Do it again and I'll put your face in the dirt." There was no amount of strength or control Kakashi had to keep his face from going bright red at the mental image that suddenly invaded his brain. "K...Kakashi? Are you alright?"

He slapped Gai's hand away as soon as it started to reach out to check his temperature "I'm fine," He sputtered hopelessly, glad that his mask was in place to hide the small nosebleed he had gotten by the sudden onslaught of perverted thoughts.  "L...let's just get back." He turned his back to his friend and started to walk away when he felt Gai wrapping his arms around his shoulders and pulled him back for a hug. 

"You know, if we're going to do this whole 'living on our own' thing, we need to trust each other." He hated the sadness that slipped through Gai's voice. Was that how he made his friend feel? Did he really think he didn't trust him? 

That wasn't how he wanted things to go.

"I trust you, Turtle." A soft promise, followed almost immediately by Gai's arm's tightening around his shoulders. "I wouldn't be here if I didn't trust you." 

"I would believe you more if you stopped using that ridiculous nickname." Gai muttered against his shoulder. 

Kakashi turned around in his spot, laughing to himself at how easily Gai adjusted his grip so that he could move freely. Once he was facing his friend, he reached out with his left hand and laid it down in Gai's hair gently. "Not a chance." He closed his eyes to show his smile, laughing when Gai huffed in annoyance and finally released his grip on him. 

"Then I'll just have to find an equally ridiculous nickname for you." They both knew that was never going to happen. Gai had been trying to come up with a nickname for him since he had started calling him 'turtle', but nothing brought on the same feelings of embarrassment for Kakashi. 

Still, it was nice that he continued to try. 

"Let's head back to Tonika." He said softly, "we can give the contractor the news about his loan and then find a spot to make dinner."

"It would be nice to eat." Gai mussed, his eyes scanning over to the small bag on Kakashi's back that they had bought to carry all of their supplies in "alright."

"Maybe tomorrow we can eat in town, since we saved a bit of money." It would be nice to find a small place to eat out, instead of having to cook all the time. 

Unfortunately, leaving the village hadn't changed Gai's personality at all apparently. As soon as dinner out was mentioned, his eyes lit up with determination.

"In that case, I challenge you to an eating contest." He stated with more excitement than Kakashi could ever muster over the idea of stuffing his face "and I promise I'll win this time." 

"You say that every time." Kakashi started to walk, very aware of the fact that Gai was hot on his heels "but if you insist on embarrassing yourself again, sure."

* * *

The last few hours had been wasted searching the area around Tonika for any sign of Kakashi and Might Gai, but they had found nothing. Not even a hint of them being around the area. 

This was proving to be more difficult than Yamato had thought. Perhaps Might Gai had learned how to cover his tracks from Kakashi? Or perhaps they had already left the area. It would be unwise to hang around in one area after leaving Konoha after all. 

Still, they shouldn't be this hard to find. Root operatives were the most highly trained, they were supposed to be able to find their target no matter what. 

"Incoming!" He grunted when the operative closest to him grabbed his shoulder and pulled him deeper into the bushes. 

It seemed like their luck had changed though. Down the road, Yamato could barely make out two figures approaching them, their steps short and slow, and Kakashi's figure was hard to mistake for anyone else with spiky silver hair and that relaxed, almost lazy slouch of his shoulders. 

The other figure was bigger, much bigger. They made Kakashi look small in comparison, but that didn't necessarily mean anything for their strength. Kakashi was Anbu trained, Might Gai was not. 

"I'm telling you, it'll be a good addition." His voice was also louder than Yamato ever remembered Kakashi being. This was not a man who would have done well in the Anbu, meaning the fight shouldn't be too difficult. 

"We can always just go into town for the spa's." Kakashi's voice was as unimpressed as always "the house won't be far from Tonika anyways."

Yamato tried his best not to roll his eyes. They had gone through all of the trouble of leaving Konoha, only to set themselves up 5 hours away from the village? Kakashi was slipping. 

"A bathtub would be a great addition though." Might Gai continued to argue "what if we just got home and we're too tired to go out to the spa?"

"You, tired?" There was a hint of amusement in Kakashi's voice. Something Yamato was sure he hadn't heard from the other man in all the time they had worked together. "Anyways, let's talk about it later."

It seemed like the other man was about to complain, only stopping himself when Kakashi's feet halted in the middle of the road and his eyes darted towards the bushes where Yamato was currently hiding with one of his many teammates. 

"Tenzo!" A shiver ran down his spin when Kakashi called out to him, his attention focused Solely on Yamato rather than anyone else in the group. "Did you really think a sneak attack would work?"

That was a fair point. Even without the sharingan Kakashi was known for being alert and aware of his surroundings. He had never been caught off guard on a mission, or even in Konoha for that fact. 

There was no point in hiding anymore, so Yamato got to his feet and left the bushes, making himself visible to Kakashi and his friend even as the rest of his comrades continued to stay hidden. 

Perhaps they had made the mistake of thinking Kakashi had only noticed Yamato? He doubted that though, Kakashi was likely speaking to the person he knew the best in the group. 

"Is there something we can help you with?" His voice was calm, but Yamato could tell from the way his eyes searched the bushes and trees that Kakashi was on edge. He knew what this was, he just didn't want to alert his friend to the danger if he didn't have to. 

"Danzo has listed you as traitors to Konoha." He tried his best not to react when Kakashi rolled his visible eye in response "Traitors don't get to walk free."

"Name one thing we've done against Konoha." That was a fair point, they hadn't actually done anything to harm Konoha or anyone from the village, but orders were orders. "You really think Danzo is someone worth following still?"

"Orders are still orders." He didn't really believed the words himself, he hadn't believed them the same as before ever since meeting Yukimi and having Kakashi's help with protecting her. But he couldn't turn his back on Danzo and root now, it was all he had.

Kakashi didn't respond though, not right away. Instead, he turned his attention towards his friend, saying nothing but still somehow managing to convey his thoughts to the other man. At least, that's what Yamato could assume had happened when he saw Might Gai nodding his head. 

"This is your last chance." This time when he spoke, Kakashi raised his voice, making it clear that he was speaking to everyone in the surrounding area and not just Yamato. "I won't kill anyone, but if you decide to attack i won't leave you standing either."

Cocky. He was always so Cocky and full of himself. 

For Yamato, that personality trait meant nothing. He had met so many people who were too cocky and full of themselves, and they always fall in the end.

His comrades didn't think the same apparently. As soon as the warning had left Kakashi's mouth they were on the attack, bursting from their hiding place ready to take on their target. 

Yamato on the other hand, knew better. Everyone would be focusing their energy on Kakashi, he had been the one to underestimate them after all, he needed to take care of Might Gai. 

He reacted quickly, weaving his signs with an easy familiarity and watching as the wooden columns burst out towards the other man. He wasn't fast enough though. Before his attack could surround Gai, the man had burst forward, avoiding the attack with a strange ease.

Except he didn't aim for Yamato, the only person who had bothered to attack him. Instead, he remained at Kakashi's side and immediately started to deal with one of the four shinobi currently attacking his companion. 

Yamato would be offended, but he had figured as much when he read the man's file. One thing had been made very clear in the description of Might Gai, Kakashi was important to him. He was known for breaching mission objectives to protect Kakashi, or to try and keep Kakashi safe. Doing so in this battle was completely in character for him. 

"Duck!" His eyes snapped up, narrowing as he watched Might Gai listen to the instructions yelled out mid battle so that Kakashi could take a fist across his current targets face. It appeared Might Gai wasn't the only one willing to put his own safety at risk for his partner. An odd occurrence, as Yamato had rarely seen Kakashi show such concern over anyone else. 

Well, at least anyone that wasn't him for some reason.

He gave his head a shake. He had a job to do here, he shouldn't be letting himself get caught up in personal thoughts. 

His hands moved without thought, weaving once more before he placed them against the ground and waited for his attack to hit. 

Problem was, it seemed Kakashi had seen his movements, because the next thing he knew Might Gai was being shoved out of the way just as his wood style attack jolted out of the ground and sent Kakashi flying up into the air.

Usually, a direct hit on his target would be cause for celebration, even if it wasn't the person he was aiming for.

This time, it made his stomach churn. He hadn't realized how much he didn't want to hurt Kakashi until he saw his friend hit the ground with a thud. 

This wasn't right. This wasn't how a mission was supposed to make him feel. 

He had little time to dwell on the fact though, because suddenly Gai was right in his face and he had exactly .5 of a second to put his arms up before a painful blow sent him flying backwards. 

His back collided with a tree, stopping him from flying any further and sending pain shooting up through his body. Apparently a direct hit on Kakashi was a bad idea when dealing with Gai. He didn't seem to like that at all. 

"Gai!" His eyes shot over to Kakashi, watching as he forced himself to his feet as the other 4 surrounded him "Go easy!"

Easy? Was this a joke? Was Kakashi underestimating him? He didn't need anyone to go easy on him, he had a mission to do!

Gai seemed to take the order seriously though, his shoulders relaxing slightly even as the rest of his body moved into an attack stance. 

It seemed Yamato was going to have to take this fight more seriously than he thought. Moving back to his feet, he started to weave his hands together, but it wasn't fast enough. Before he could even finish his hand signs Gai had appeared in front of him in an instance and taken a fist directly to his stomach. 

"Stay down." The order was clear, and it left no room for argument as Yamato curled into himself. If he got up again, the next hit wasn't going to be so nice. 

Well, 'nice' was putting it lightly. If this was Might Gai going 'easy' on him he wasn't tempted to find out what full strength felt like. He could already taste blood in his mouth from the second hit, and he was sure if a third was to follow he wouldn't be able to get up even if he wanted to.

So instead, he allowed himself to collapse to the ground while Gai turned his back on him, readying himself to return to Kakashi's side for the rest of the fight as the area burst with the sound of birds. 

That wasn't good. Kakashi was using his Chidori, he only did that when he was ready to take out an enemy permanently. 

Danzo was bound to be pissed if Yamato came back alive while the rest of his comrades were killed. He'd see the favoritism Kakashi was showing clear as day. 

"Kakashi,no!" Apparently Gai had come to the same conclusion, bolting from his spot to Kakashi's side as Yamato looked up and focused on the scene. 

Even with the speed that had brought him to Yamato's front in a matter of seconds, there was no way Gai could stop Kakashi's attack. The chidori increased his speed exponentially, making it almost impossible to avoid or prevent. 

Except, as soon as Gai had spoken out it seemed like Kakashi had forced himself to stop and reevaluate his situation, leaving his friend enough time to show up at his side. 

"If we kill anyone we are enemies of Konoha, you know that." The words were soft, meant for Kakashi only as Gai tuned out everyone else. "I know you're angry…"

Angry? Was that something Kakashi was capable of. He had never seen the other man reacting out of anger, or even showing hints of it in any of their missions together. 

"Who the hell…" even with the mask on Yamato could tell that Kakashi's jaw was clenched tightly, preventing him from speaking with the same clear and calm voice he always had "does Danzo have you all so brainwashed that you think attacking friends is alright!?"

"I hardly think you get to talk about attacking friends." Yamato watched as one of his comrades moved into an attack position, ready to face Kakashi even as his hand sparked with electricity. "You're the one who killed your own friend and teammate. The reason Rin Nohara came home in a body scroll!"

It was obvious even Gai couldn't stop Kakashi at this point. Before he could even move the Anbu Soldier was gone from His side, tackling the other operative to the ground and holding his chidori high over him as the sparks grew bigger.

"Shut up!" Yamato could hear the anger now. It was as clear as daylight as he held his attack over the other shinobi. There were no words that followed, no explanation. Instead, Kakashi slammed his hand down into the ground violently, sending electricity through the dirt and watching as it lit up around all four Shinobi currently surrounding him. 

Once the sparks had died down, Yamato watched as all four of his comrades collapsed. Not one of them was left standing as Kakashi's body shook. It was as if he had killed them all in an instant. 

"Kakashi…" it seemed that his friend had been thinking the same thing, his eyes scanning over the four fallen shinobi as Kakashi carefully gathered himself to his feet. "You..you didn't…"

"They're alive." Yamato breathed a sigh of relief. He hadn't looked forward to explaining to Danzo how Kakashi had managed to kill four top tier root operatives in a single blow. 

Now it was time to make a choice. He could tell that Kakashi had tired himself out with that final attack, his body shaking with exhaustion as Gai appeared by his side and forced an arm around his neck so that he could support Kakashi. Was it worth making the attack, or was he just going to end up like his comrades? 

"Is this really the organization you really want to give your life to…" his eyes widened. Kakashi hadn't bothered to turn and look at him, but it was obvious who he was talking to. The anger had seeped away from his voice, replaced instead by exhaustion and tenderness. "Is Danzo really the person you want to follow to the grave?"

"You don't understand!" He snapped to his feet, ready to continue his fight, to finish his mission. "Root is my home! It's all I have!"

"Is it though?" Kakashi kept his back facing him even as Gai turned to look back at him. His entire body shook, and he wasn't sure if it was the fear of what Danzo would do if he failed, or the sick feeling in the pit of his stomach at the thought of killing his friend. Someone who had never done him any harm. "Are you sure you have nowhere else to turn?"

What kind of stupid question was that? Of course he didn't, he had been created by orochimaru and rescued by Danzo. Most of the village didn't even know he existed, that he was alive and breathing. Why would they care about taking him in if he turned his back on Danzo? 

Kakashi just didn't understand. He had always been a part of the village, had a home and friends in Konoha. Things Yamato didn't have. Hell, he hadn't even had a name to call himself until he met Danzo. 

"I can't turn my back on my home…" he whispered "i'm not you!" 

He moved to grab his weapon, ready to fight for his beliefs and his life when Gai showed up in front of him again, grabbing his arm and lifting it over his head violently. How was this man so damn fast? 

"Is that what Danzo has you believing?" This time it was Gai speaking to him, finally acknowledging his presence outside of battle. "That we turned out back on Konoha?"

"What other explanation do you have?" He demanded, his eyes still glued on Kakashi even as he directed his answer to Gai. "What possible reason could you have to turn your back on your home!?"

"It's still our home." Gai's voice went soft, his eyes glancing back over to Kakashi as he spoke. "It will always be our home, and we will always protect it."

"Then why leave!?" Yamato demanded "why remove yourselves from a place you call home if you claim to love it still?" 

"Just because it's home, doesn't mean it's good for you." His heart stopped. Home was safe, home was with the people who cared about you. How...how could that be a bad thing? "Sometimes home has people in it that care more for missions or jobs than they do for the people that they share a space with. Sometimes, for your own health, it's better to leave your home even if it's only for a short time." 

The entire time he spoke, Gai kept his eyes on Kakashi. This time though, Yamato didn't feel like he was being ignored. The hand holding his arm up over his head was still there, even if it had loosened its grip a little, and when he spoke Gai made it clear his words were meant to be heard by Yamato. 

It couldn't have been meant for anyone else. Kakashi had already decided to agree with those views, and everyone else was unconscious. 

Still, it made no sense. Danzo had always explained home as a place you belonged. A place you couldn't leave behind. How could their version of home be so different?

"You should know all of this, Tenzo." His old name slipped past Kakashi's mouth. The name Yukimi had called him by. "You can't honestly tell me you enjoy being in Root, listening to a man as evil as Danzo."

"It's all i have!" He snapped, pulling his arm away from Gai's grip violently and taking a few steps backwards "i have nowhere else to go! No one else who cares!" 

"You know that's not true." His heart stopped when Kakashi finally looked back at him. His eyes were half closed, showing just how tired he was, but the kindness was still there. The same kindness Kakashi had always shown him since the first time they met. "Danzo just doesn't want to lose you, you're a power house no one else has. He has to keep you, even if it means breaking you down."

"You don't know anything!" He snapped "you've always had others, people who cared about you!" The kindness in those eyes disappear slowly, replaced by a sadness he had never seen Kakashi show before.

"It's a different experience i guess." He turned his attention back to Gai, growling when he saw the way the other man smile. Who the hell smiled during a fight? "You had no one, Kakashi lost everyone."

"Everyone?" He huffed "then what the hell are you?"

Gai seemed to contemplate this for a second, unsure of how to answer the question that had been thrown at him. 

"His Rival." Yamato scuffed. Was that really the answer he was going to go with? Rival? Who the hell left their village and home for a rival? 

"It doesn't matter." They both glanced back at Kakashi, watching as he turned around in his spot to fully face them "i have no control over what you do Tenzo, but I do know that if you go back there you'll find Danzo doesn't care as much as you think he does." 

With that said, Kakashi started to head down the path back towards Tonika, allowing Gai to appear at his side and throw his arm back around his neck as his footing faltered. 

There was nothing else for Yamato to do. Even if he wanted to continue fighting, it was obvious that Might Gai had been heavily underestimated by all of his files. He was too fast, too strong. If he wanted to have a chance against him, he'd need a shinobi who could match speed with the man. 

And that was only if he wanted to fight them again, but a part of him didn't want a repeat fight at all. He didn't want to have to face Kakashi anymore, the thought made him feel sick. He was going to have to ask Danzo to send someone else, and he could already tell that was going to get him in trouble.

Either way, he had to wait for his comrades to wake up. He couldn't head back without them, and they were currently unable to defend themselves if any other attackers showed up. 

With that decides, Yamato settled himself against the tree he had been sent flying into not too long ago and sighed. 

This was going to be a mess to explain to Danzo. 


	5. New Tag Along

Every bone in his body screamed in pain, demanding that he find a bed and lay down to rest. Problem was, his brain completely disagreed and wanted nothing less than to turn around and Drag Tenzo away. Away from root, away from Danzo, from everything and everyone that made him think that his only purpose was to live and work for Danzo and his crap organization. 

He hated it. Danzo had always been able to wiggle his way under people's skin, getting them to do what he wanted. It had even worked on Kakashi himself for a short amount of time, but he hadn't gotten to him when he was a child. 

He hadn't had the time to warp his mind like he had done with Tenzo. 

"You're worried about that kid?" He didn't bother to meet Gai's eye. His friend always seemed to know what was on his mind, no matter how much he tried to hide it. "Should we have left him there?" 

"There is nothing we could have done." He whispered, even as a part of him screamed about how wrong he was. About how he needed to go back and protect Tenzo. "Danzo has him brainwashed."

"Even those who have been brainwashed since childhood can find an escape with the right persuasion." Gai was always so optimistic. It was amazing in a way, how he managed to find something good in a world that continued to be rotten to the core. "Perhaps there is something we can still do…"

"Tenzo has to see for himself that he is expendable to Danzo." He explained "He won't believe otherwise until he does, no matter how much we talk to him or what his own gut is telling him about the man." 

"Are you saying this from experience?" He glared at his friend in response "it's a fair comparison I think. You were more than willing to give up your life for Konoha and Lord third just a few days ago." 

"That's different." He huffed "i'm fully aware of how corrupt the system is."

"You just didn't care?" Gai examined him for a second, sighing when he showed no signs of agreeing or disagreeing with his statement. "What made you change your mind?"

Kakashi thought about his words carefully, not wanting to give away too much but also not wanting to lie to Gai. 

"I realized I had something to live for." He whispered "that maybe...there was someone who still wanted me around."

The hand around his waist tightened slightly, the only sign he was likely to get at that moment that he had managed to make Gai realize how much he had saved him. 

"Still…" he glanced back behind him, sighing when he didn't see Tenzo following them. He knew better than to expect the kid to realize he had another option, a safer place to go, but he had still hoped that maybe some sense had come to him. 

"Do you think he'll be ok?" It was a legitimate question. Danzo was a dangerous man, anyone who had heard about him knew that. But was he that dangerous? Was he really willing to hurt someone who relied on him so much? "I can go back…"

"We." He corrected his friend "i know i'm not in fighting condition, but Tenzo is guarded, more so than me in some ways." 

Gai nodded his understanding. He knew it wasn't a preferred choice for his friend, forcing him to keep going when he was obviously so exhausted, but it was the only one they had.

If Gai went back, he had to as well. 

"Not the forest though." He whispered. Tenzo wouldn't have changed his mind already, he wouldn't at all until he was faced with the reality of who exactly Danzo was. 

"In that case, I guess we're paying a visit to our old home." With that said, Gai shifted himself from Kakashi's side to right in front of him, smiling when Kakashi collapsed forward against his back. "You rest for now. You'll need all the energy you can muster when we get there."

There was no point in arguing with Gai when he had made up his mind, so instead Kakashi simply threw his arms around his neck and laid his head down against his shoulder while Gai lifted his legs up into his arms and started to head back towards Konoha.

They'd have to talk to the contractor when they got back. 

If they got back. 

* * *

It hadn't been long Since Yamato and his team had made it back to Konoha and reported in to Danzo, but somehow it still felt like hours since their leader had started yelling at them when they gave him the news. 

How he still had the lung capacity to keep yelling was impressive really. It was the first time Yamato had heard him scream for this long. 

Well, it was also the first time he had failed a mission during his time in root, so there hadn't really been any other times when Danzo had a reason to yell at him or his team. 

"One simple mission!" He snapped, his anger seeping through every word "i asked you to complete a simple mission and you failed!?"

"They were a lot more prepared for us than we thought, Sir." Yamato rolled his eyes. In reality, all five of them had been told not to underestimate their targets. It had been drilled into their heads before they left. 

"And you?" He winced when Danzo turned his attention to him "what is your excuse?"

Well, he didn't have one really. He hadn't really tried his best, dropping his guards a lot after he had accidentally hit Kakashi with his attack, but no answer wasn't going to fly with Danzo. He had to say something.

"I attempted to take down both of them after Kakashi had… knocked everyone else out." He ignored the glare he got from the rest of his team mates, fully aware of the fact that he had just thrown them all to the wolves. "However, without adequate backup…"

Silence fell over him when Danzo took a step forward, closing the distance between them "Don't lie to me." It was a harsh warning, one that would not be given again "what is your excuse?"

He gave himself a second to gather up his courage and looked up at his Boss with determined eyes. "I...couldn't bring myself to attack a friend."

A hand came down hard across his face, sending him spiraling to the ground while everyone else watched.

"A friend? Is that what I have taught you to concern yourself with?" The anger was more prominent this time, directed towards him specifically rather than to the entire team. "Your team was taken down in one shot and you did nothing!?"

"They don't intend to hurt Konoha!" He argued, the anger flaring up inside of him even as Danzo hovered over him "they Don't want to hurt anyone! They just want…" he winced when danzo lifted his hand again. 

"I don't care what they want." His voice was stern, leaving Yamato no room to argue. "I gave you a mission Kinoe. The mission comes first, always."

"Even at the cost of our friends lives!?" He snapped, moving backwards just in time to avoid being struck again. "What right do we have to decide that someone deserves to die when they have done nothing wrong!?"

Danzo's face changed at that moment, the anger draining away, and a look of indifference replacing it. Now he was in trouble. 

"I saved you from death, i raised you and trained you to believe in roots work and ideals." He lowered his eyes, unable to argue with the facts that Danzo was throwing at him "if you refuse to follow those ideals, you are of no use to me."

The pain in his heart hit suddenly, stopping him in his tracks as he tried to process what was being said. 

No use? How could he be of no use to his family? To the only people he had ever had in his life? Could they just throw him away like that?

Had Gai been right when he said Home wasn't always safe?

"I will give you one more chance." His hands shook as he listened to Danzo. "This time you come back with their bodies, or you don't come back at all."

"No…" his voice was weak, but he could tell by the sudden halt in movement around him that he had been heard. 

"Excuse me?" The anger returned to Danzo's voice, but this time it didn't scare him as much. This time he wasn't afraid of disappointing the man who had saved him from certain death. 

Instead, he raised his head and met the man's eyes with a defiant look "i said no." He clarified, ignoring the gasps and whispers being tossed around by his comrades. "Kakashi Hatake and Might Gai are of no threat to use. I refuse to attack my friend!"

He braced himself for the following attack, grunting when Danzo hit him in the middle of his chest and sent him tumbling backwards. 

It seemed his fate was sealed by his choice, and for a second he regretted it. If he had held out, done as he was told just a little longer, maybe he could have found a different way out. Found his own path when he was older. 

The feeling that thought left in the pit of his stomach though, told him he had made the right choice. What kind of person would he be if he turned his back on his friend, someone who had helped them even when they didn't have to? 

A coward, he thought to himself. He would be a coward.

"Take care of him." In front of him, Yamato watched as Danzo turned his back to him while the rest of his team took up their places, preparing themselves to attack. "We do not require failures in root."

His heart dropped. Was that what he was? Nothing more than a failure, even after all he had done for root. For Danzo? Was he really so expendable?

A part of him screamed to fight back, to protect himself. But what was the point? Four against one, how was he supposed to win? And his odd's didn't get any better when More Root operatives came out of the shadows to do Danzo's bidding. 

This really was going to be his end, huh?

"I would really rather you not." His eyes snapped up, zeroing in on the pair that had made themselves visible up above in the rafters.

The only one's in the room who were obviously not root operatives. 

"K...Kakashi…" he whispered to himself, watching as the two men left their spot in a flash and appeared on either side of him, protecting him in all directions from attack. "Why…"

"I told you, I'm not willing to let my friends die." The pain in his heart weakened, replaced by a small warmth that he hadn't felt in a long time. Not since the day Danzo had found him in orochimaru's layer and told him that he had a home. That root would be his family. 

"Well, at least you're saving me the trouble of sending more shinobi after you." There was a hint of amusement in Danzo's voice when he spoke again "my operatives can take care of all three of you at once."

"You really are trash, aren't you?" Everyone went silent at the remark, their eyes turning towards Danzo in search of a response. A reaction to the jab.

"I hardly think the son of a failure gets to speak such words to me." Kakashi's hand lit up with electricity, sending multiple Shinobi bolting backwards, out of the way of the attack that was likely to follow. "I assume I can thank you for corrupting all my hard work? It would make sense after all, since you father put his friends ahead of the mission as well." 

Yamato was certain Kakashi was about to attack, to break through as many people as he could in order to get to Danzo, regardless of what kind of damage he took in the process. Perhaps he would have, if another voice hadn't cut through the silence. 

"I believe that is enough." All eyes turned towards the door, silence enveloping the room as the Third Hokage made his way across the floor towards the center of all of the trouble. "Really Danzo, you never know when you've gone too far." 

"And you never know when to deal with a problem." Danzo bit back "unless you're here to help with these deserters…"

"Neither of them have been officially listed as deserters or traitors." Finally, the Chidori in Kakashi's hand died away. His attention focused solely on the third Hokage as he walked past Gai and Yamato. "What you are doing here is out of line." 

"What I am doing is acting in the defense of Konoha." Danzo growled "you are willing to wait until they attack the village to put a kill order on them, I am unwilling to take that risk." 

"You are acting without approval." There was a sternness in the Hokage's voice that Yamato had not heard before, one he was certain was saved for Danzo and situations exactly like this. "Kakashi Hatake, Might Gai and Kinoe are free to do as they please as long as they pose no threat to Konoha or its people."

It seemed for a second that Danzo was about to argue, his eyes examining his opponent for a moment before he turned his back to them all with a huff. 

"You can protect them as long as you want." He responded calmly, his feet already moving towards the opposite exit "It will all come back to bite you in the ass when they ultimately decide to turn their anger onto the village." 

Suddenly the room was empty. Every single body disappeared from sight except for the third Hokage, Kakashi, Gai and Yamato. 

"Lord Third…" Kakashi stepped forward, obviously unsure of what to say as he looked at the older man. 

"I would be a hypocrite, would I not?" All three of them looked at him in confusion "if I declared you deserters and traitors when you have done something that my own son choose to do." 

"That doesn't mean you had to protect us." Kakashi argued "we are hardly your concern when we are no longer Shinobi of Konoha."

"You are correct." Finally, the third turned his back to the empty space that Danzo had occupied just moments ago, focusing his attention instead in the three shinobi still in the room with him. "But I am not so careless and corrupt that i will allow Danzo to do as he pleases, including the murder of perfectly good shinobi." 

For a second, Yamato thought that Kakashi was going to argue, but no words came. 

"We should go." Gai's voice broke the silence, pulling Kakashi's attention out of his thoughts and back into reality. "You're going to collapse soon, and it's still a five hour run back to Tonika." 

"Of course." Kakashi nodded, shifting his feet so that he was now facing Yamato and holding out a hand towards him. "Come on, Kid."

Yamato's eyes widened, "You…you want me to…"

'We didn't come here to leave you in Danzo's grasp." Kakashi stated matter of factly "and I'm not leaving you close enough for him to try anything when i can't watch over you."

"I would suggest you keep yourself well guarded." The third advised as he started to head back towards the door he had come in "Danzo has many allies outside of Konoha that i have no control over." 

"We'll be fine." Gai's voice was harsher when he spoke to the hokage, less forgiving. It seemed out of character with the man Yamato had met earlier that day. 

"I don't doubt that, Gai." Taking Kakashi's hand, Yamato lifted himself to his feet and turned to look at Lord third and Gai as they stared each other down. "I've never seen you so Angry. I guess it's to be expected though."

"Saving us doesn't clean the slate." Gai stated, his back stiff as he stared down the older man "it's appreciated, but I'm not changing my mind. We left for a reason."

"Because of me." The third nodded "I assure you Gai, there was never a moment where I doubted where your loyalties lay." 

"You say that as if he has no loyalty to Konoha." Kakashi's voice was as calm as ever, but somewhere underneath Yamato could hear the uncertainty. The question that Kakashi refused to ask. "Gai has always been one of Konoha's most loyal Shinobi."

The Third Hokage just smiled in response, turning his back to all three shinobi and continuing on his way without another word, leaving both Kakashi and Yamato's silent questions unanswered. 

What else could Might Gai possibly be more loyal to? 

With everyone else out of the room, Gai finally allowed his shoulders to relax and a sigh of relief to leave his throat. "That was intense."

"Let's get back to Tonika." Kakashi whispered "we're going to have to talk to the contractor tomorrow." 

"And what about our new tag along?" Gai asked, watching as Kakashi walked over to his side with Yamato trailing close behind "he agreed to build us a one bedroom place."

"Leave an open space for a door." Kakashi shrugged "Tenzo can build his own room."

"I could build the whole house myself." Yamato pointed out "we don't need a contractor."

"You're not here to play house maker." He ducked his head when Kakashi reached back and placed a hand in his hair. "We already did what we had to to get the place built for us. May as well get the place we agreed on with this guy."

"My house would be better." Yamato huffed, grunting when Kakashi moved his hand down to his shoulder and gave him a gentle tug towards the exit. 

* * *

They were three hours into their trip back to Tonika and Yamato couldn't wait to find a nice soft piece of ground to sleep on. His entire body ached due to the abuse it had taken from both Gai and Danzo that day, and his eyes were starting to feel heavier and heavier by the second.

He would usually ask to stop and take a break, but it didn't seem so far to be the one to complain about being tired when Kakashi was still jumping from branch to branch even while he looked like he was about to collapse at any moment. 

Thankfully, it seemed like Gai had clued in to the fact that his two companions were tired. His feet came to a stop on the next branch that he landed on, and he waited patiently for Kakashi and Yamato to catch up to him, both having fallen behind a ways back. 

"I think we should stop here." He directed his comments to Kakashi, making it clear that the final choice was up to his friend. "Neither of you look like you're going to make it much further."

"Not all of us have unlimited energy." Yamato had heard Kakashi making jabs at others before, but never with such playfulness. "Alright, we can stop here." 

With that said, Kakashi dropped down from the tree they were standing on and landed on the ground below, leaving Yamato and Gai behind as he dropped his bag and turned to take out the two sleeping bags they had packed. 

"You can use my sleeping bag." Yamato turned to look at Gai in surprise. "You won't sleep well at all if you're cold."

"You're weird." Yamato admitted with a sigh "why are you being so nice?"

For a second he didn't think he was going to get an answer, Gai's eyes were too focused on Kakashi down below for him to believe that his comment had even been heard 

"It's rare." He examined the other man, waiting for further explanation to his comment "Kakashi's always so closed off and distant. For him to decide that someone is worth his attention...worth opening himself up to in anyway, anyone who earns that kind of openness from Kakashi deserves kindness."

He wasn't exactly sure how to respond. Kakashi had never shown himself to be open to him, he still knew so little about him. Almost nothing in fact.

He still had so much to learn about his friend. 

"I know it's hard to see." When he turned his attention back to Gai, he found the other man smiling at him. "I used to think I didn't know him either. That he'd never consider me a friend, or even a comrade."

"But that...changed?" He pushed for more information, anything he could get. 

"One day I realized that Kakashi is just...like that." He explained "he has never been good at opening up and showing his emotions. It's just not something that comes to him naturally, maybe because his brain is so focused on being a genius in logistics and tactics. Maybe it just...forgot to build up his emotional responses to the same level as me or you." 

It was a weird way of explaining the situation, but Yamato understood. He had met more than a few people in Root who had never been good with emotional responses, either because they suppressed them or because they never learned how to display them properly. 

"I know it'll take a while to see, but Kakashi already made it clear that you're important to him." His heart stopped. Important? He was...someone cared about him? Worried about him? "He would never have forgiven himself if we hadn't gone back for you."

"And you think…" his eyes traveled back downwards, watching as Kakashi set up the two sleeping bags beside one of the trees. 

"I know that means Kakashi values you." Gai corrected him "I've seen him that protective with only a few people."

"Shouldn't he be in the village with those people then?" He asked "nearby, so he can make sure they're OK?"

The smile stayed on Gai's face, but a sadness filled his eyes as he thought about what Yamato had said.

"If they were alive, I would agree with you." His stomach churned. They were dead? All of them? "Kakashi has lost a lot for the village, more than most people our age. I don't mean to take away from your pain or anyone else's by saying that but...it's true." 

"Is that why he got so upset?" He asked, thinking back to the fight they had in the forest near Tonika "When the operative mentioned…"

"Rin…" the sadness in Gai's eyes dripped into the name he spoke "Kakashi is known for killing her, people have even called him a friend killer because of it. Not one of them has seen how he handled it though. How it crushed him to have to bring back her dead body, how he cried when he told his Sensei what happened…"

Cry? Yamato couldn't imagine Kakashi crying. It seemed so...out of character. 

"Kakashi will open up to you more." Gai's smile seemed to grow, becoming almost blinding with bright white teeth against the dark backdrop of night. "You'll see."

"Oy, you two!" They both looked down when they heard Kakashi calling out to them "are you coming down here to sleep or not?"

"Impatient much." Yamato smiled to himself, shifting his feet and dropping down from the branch so that he landed perfectly beside Kakashi.

Gai followed closely behind, an arm coming down around Kakashi's shoulder as soon as he had touched down on the ground. "You two get some sleep" he smiled "i'll keep watch incase anyone tries anything."

"You can keep watch and stay warm." Kakashi huffed, nudging Gai in the ribs and using the moment he curled protectively into himself to put his hands on his back and shove him towards one of the sleeping bags. 

Yamato didn't bother to ask, taking the cue and heading for the opposite sleeping bag and crawling into the warm fabric. It would be nice to have a nap. "I'll take the next shift." He offered, smiling when Kakashi and Gai both looked at him "what?"

"You will sleep is what you'll do." Kakashi said, narrowing his eyes when yamato tried to protest "we have night shift duty."

"Oh ya, because you should definitely be getting only 4 hours of sleep." Gai huffed, falling back against the tree and sliding down into the ground with a sigh "go to bed, Kakashi."

"I am perfectly capable of surviving off of four hours of sleep." Kakashi objected, even as he did as he was told and crawled into the sleeping bag beside Gai, his shoulders brushing against the other man's as he settled into his spot against the tree. 

It was odd. Yamato had never seen Kakashi putting himself so close to another person, usually preferring to keep himself quiet distant from others when it was time to sleep. 

"I'll agree to that statement when you're not still dealing with chakra exhaustion." Gai said softly, an arm coming down around Kakashi's shoulder and pulling him close. "For now, let's go for a full 8 hours of sleep."

"One would think you were the team captain here." Kakashi mused, his voice already heavy with sleep. 

"Only in matters of sleep." Gai assured his friend "the tactical stuff is all yours."


	6. Birthday Plans

The last week had been an interesting experience for Yamato. He had watched his new home being built, gotten the chance to design his own bedroom from the ground up, and even got to experience Kakashi's cooking for the first time ever.

It was amazing. Possibly some of the best food he had ever eaten. He would not object if Kakashi told him one day that he wanted to be a chef instead of a Shinobi, but he really didn't see that ever happening. 

Another thing he had gotten to experience was the openness Kakashi seemed to show around Gai. His emotions were still a mystery to him most of the time, but physically he was a much different person around Might Gai. His body was relaxed whenever Gai was around him, he always kept the distance between them at a minimum, and he was a lot more...handsey, than Yamato ever recalled him being before. 

There wasn't a moment that he wasn't touching Gai in some way if it was possible and appropriate. A hand on his arm when they were relaxing, shoulders pressed against each other when they were talking to others, and in private moments Yamato sometimes found himself lucky enough to walk into a scene where Kakashi's hand was buried deep into Gai's hair and their foreheads were pressed right up against each other. 

He'd call it cute, if it wasn't for the fact that Gai didn't seem to catch the hint about what any of this meant. How much Kakashi relied on him and wanted him close.

Instead, he was always treating others with the same openness and kindness as he did Kakashi, going as far as to flirt with those his age or even a few years older. 

And there wasn't even a limit on who he would act this way with. Gender didn't matter to him at all, apparently, as he approached men, women and non binary people all the same. 

It was aggravating, watching Kakashi put his feelings out into the open like that and have them treated as no different than some random stranger. 

"We should go into town tonight." His head snapped up, his eyes narrowing towards Gai where he stood at their new sink and finished the dishes made from their breakfast "have dinner out "

"We have so much meat from the last mission." Kakashi countered, glaring when Yamato snorted in response "do we really need to go out into public?"

It was a true statement. The last mission they had gotten was from an older man who wasn't able to pay them with Money, but Kakashi had been more happy to accept the mission anyways. The reward they ended up coming home to was more than enough meat to survive them for the next few weeks. 

"It's different today though." Gai argued over the sound of dishes clinking together as he started to put them away "you shouldn't be cooking on your birthday." 

Yamato was pretty sure his brain broke at that exact moment. Birthday? Kakashi had one of those? He celebrated them? Was that even allowed?

"I'm only 17." Kakashi reminded his friend, acting as if Yamato hadn't just been handed a gold mine of information. "Besides, what are we even supposed to do? It's not like we're old enough for any of the more fun activities."

"No, but dinner out would be a good start." Gai beamed "We could explore the area after if you want. We haven't actually explored a lot of the village."

"That sounds like an activity that's going to involve a lot of people." Kakashi furrowed his brows "it's not my favorite situation."

"You can always hide away in Gai's arms." Yamato ducked as soon as he saw Kakashi reaching out for the nearest object. It was awesome, finally having something to bug the older boy with. 

Placing the last dish in the cupboard, Gai turned towards the other two and leaned back against the counter with a sigh. "We can spend the rest of the week eating at home." He offered as a compromise "just tonight, one night out to celebrate."

Yamato personally thought it was a good idea. They couldn't hide away in the small house all the time, only going out for the odd mission or to train. That would be an uneventful and boring life. 

He knew how Kakashi could be though. Anti Social, closed off and preferring only select company Kakashi was not someone who could be easily convinced into going out into a public and very crowded area. 

"Fine…" his mouth dropped open slightly. Had he really just heard Kakashi agreeing to a night out? "But that means you can't wake me up for early morning training tomorrow."

For a second it seemed as though Gai might reconsider his proposal. Over the last week he had been able to Drag Kakashi out of bed early every morning for Training, even convincing the other Shinobi to sit on his back to help create more difficulty in his push ups. Giving up early morning training wasn't something he seemed very keen to do.

Ultimately though, his shoulders dropped in defeat. "Fine." He agreed, even as his voice screamed out the fact that he hated the entire concept of their arrangement. 

"Oh…" A smile crossed Yamato's face "i should go to town early." 

"Tenzo if you waste any of your money on a stupid birthday gift…" Kakashi's protests were cut off by Gai's sudden appearance by his side, and the weight of his hand coming down onto his shoulder. 

"It's his money." Gai reminded his friend with a tender smile "let him spend it how he chooses to." 

Kakashi responded with a huff, turning his face away from the other two and crossing his arms over his chest "i don't need things." He whispered, his good eye refusing to meet either of their gazes. 

"Well, that's not completely true." This was one of those rare moments Yamato felt like a third wheel in a very weird relationship. Gai had brought a hand up from his side, waiting for Kakashi to look at it and nodded his head before he brushed his fingers against the scar that sat over his damaged eye. "You could use something to cover your eye. It must be annoying always having to keep it closed."

"The only thing that ever made sense was my headband." Kakashi argued as his shoulders relaxed under the gentle graze of Gai's fingers "an eye patch would look weird, and there's nothing else that wouldn't be...out of place."

"I'm sure we can find something." Gai smiled that ridiculous blinding smile "but we still have the whole day ahead of us. You wanted to make a letterbox today?"

"More like a Mission drop box." Kakashi shrugged his shoulders "so if we're not home when someone comes over they can just leave a description of what they want done."

"It does seem that our presence here is already quite well known." Gai nodded in agreement, "it's a grand idea. Yamato can go do his exploring and we can take care of building something like that." 

"Or," Yamato gave Gai his most unimpressed look. Did he really forget his abilities? "I could make it before I leave and we could all have the day to do whatever we want with."

"That would work." Kakashi mused "then we could just head to the river."

Gai narrowed his eyes towards his friend. "You just want to nap." 

"You woke me up at 5am." Kakashi responded, sticking out a finger and poking Gai in the chest "if i want to nap by the river after early morning training and before night time shenanigans, i should be allowed to." 

"Fine." Gai rolled his eyes "but i'm not going to be your personal pillow."

At that, Yamato pushed himself away from the table and stood up to leave. The last thing he needed to listen to was two idiots flirting. 

* * *

It had been a long day, and honestly Yamato was certain that he wasn't going to be able to find anything for Kakashi's birthday before he was supposed to meet the other two at the village gates. He had almost given up when he looked at the time and realized he only had half an hour left. 

Thankfully, it seemed like last minute luck was on his side today. He had been passing by the last few shops on the way towards the village gates when he saw it, the perfect present. It hadn't taken any convincing from the shopkeeper to buy it, and it was cheap enough that Kakashi really had no reason to argue against receiving it. 

With his goal finished, he tucked the present away in his pocket and headed towards the village gates.

He had of course expected Kakashi and Gai to be there already waiting for him. Even if Kakashi was known for being late, Gai seemed to be the opposite when it came to punctuality, always arriving a few minutes early. 

"Tenzo!" Kakashi called out to him when he noticed his presence, forcing Yamato to look at his face.

His beautiful, uncovered face. 

Was it really his fault when the nosebleed hit him? No one had warned him that Kakashi had such a pretty face. No one had even bothered to tell him that the older man was going to go maskless for the night. 

Even when they ate together Kakashi always seemed to manage to keep his face hidden, somehow eating without moving his mask, or at such an incredible speed that Yamato had not seen the moment he pulled his mask down. 

It didn't help that the pair had apparently done some shopping of their own. Kakashi's old Anbu uniform had been replaced by a soft grey shirt, a nice black pair of pants, and the most form fitting jacket he had ever seen.

And if that wasn't bad enough, Gai's bright green spandex suit had been left behind in favor of a soft blue Hanfu, with a slightly darker blue cloak hanging over his shoulders. It all covered Gai's body perfectly, even framing his face so that one's eyes couldn't help but look at it.

The only downside to this entire scenario was that neither of them had told him that they were going clothes shopping, so he was stuck standing there in his own anbu uniform like a dork. 

Gai seemed to notice the sudden shift in his attitude first, a smile spreading across his face as he reached out and laid an elbow on Kakashi's shoulder. "I think someone feels out of place."

"Why?" Kakashi seemed genuinely confused by the comment "did...did i…" his eyes darted over to Gai, seemingly searching for an answer to what had gone wrong. 

"You did nothing wrong." Gai assured his friend "we just assumed he was going to buy himself some new clothes, so we did the same. It appears we were wrong." 

"Oh." Yamato gave his head a shake. This was all way too much to process. 

"The cloths are one thing." He agreed, stamping down the blush that threatened to creep up on his neck when Kakashi turned his attention back to him "when...where is your mask?"

Where he expected Kakashi to give him a shy smile, or the most unimpressed look ever, Yamato was instead greeted by nothing.

No facial change. 

No emotional clues.

Absolutely nothing. 

Instead, Kakashi just shrugged his shoulders, one hand coming up to scratch his chin. "Gai thought it would be good if I didn't wear the mask out in public tonight." He admitted "it took a bit of convincing, but he thought you'd relax a bit if I wasn't hiding my face all the time." 

Relax? Did they think he needed to relax? Had he not been chill enough for the two of them over the last week? 

"I'm pretty sure he just wanted to see your face more himself." He muttered under his breath. 

Kakashi seemed to be genuinely confused by this remark, looking over to Gai once again for an explanation. It was as if all his understanding of People and their expectations and desires came from Gai. 

"I just thought it would be a nice change for the night." Gai offered "seeing your face is hardly a concern for me."

"Considering you forget who I am every morning, I can see why." Yamato huffed. "Anyways, any idea where we're going for dinner?"

"Well i asked around about ideas while we were shopping," Gai mused "there's this nice Sushi place everyone keeps suggesting." 

"We had Sushi for our last outing." Kakashi reminded his friend with an elbow to the ribs "you stuffed yourself full and complained all night about stomach cramps." 

Gai's face went bright red at the jab. "We...we're not having an eating contest tonight." He protested "but fine, if you want to be that way…"

"I do." It was a playful jab, followed by absolutely no smile or smirk on Kakashi's face. Yamato was a little concerned. Was Kakashi sick? Did he really hate public that much?

"W...what are you doing?" He blinked, looking up at the other man and noticing that he had reached out and placed a hand against Kakashi's forehead. An action he could not recall making. 

His hand snapped back down to his side, fingers digging into the soft black fabric of his pants as he tried to figure out what an appropriate response was. Anything to say that wouldn't make him look crazy or weird.

"That's what Asuma and Ebisu did the first time they saw you without your mask." His shoulders relaxed. If others had done it to Kakashi, he couldn't be that weird. It was obviously a normal reaction. "I think he's making sure you're not sick."

"Why does everyone think i'm sick when they see my face?" Kakashi sighed "am i pale? Do i look sickly?"

Yamato shook his head "no, no, it's just…" he paused, trying to figure out the best way to explain himself "well, it's been 3 minutes since I saw you and at every opportunity to smile or frown you…you haven't."

Kakashi lowered his eyes. Obviously he had said something wrong, he had to backtrack. 

Before he could though, Gai had cut in. "Kakashi doesn't express himself like the rest of us." He explained, slapping Kakashi's hand down when he instinctively reached up to grab his mask and pull it back over his face. "The mask helps to hide that fact. It's just something to get used to."

"No one gets used to it." Kakashi muttered under his breath, his eyes downcast as the other two looked over at him. "It's not normal."

Thinking quick, Yamato reached into his pocket and pulled out the gift that he had gotten just moments ago with the hope that it would make this situation just a little better.

"Here." He held it out towards the other man, refusing to meet Kakashi's gaze "H...Happy Birthday Kakashi-Senpai."

He wasn't sure what part of that sentence he had said wrong, but Kakashi's hand wasn't moving. Nothing was. It was as if his entire brain had stopped working.

"W...what did you call me?" When he finally spoke it was with confusion. Though, Yamato couldn't figure out what part of his sentence had been confusing this time. 

"Kakashi-Senpai" he repeated himself "it's your name."

"Senpai is not part of my name." It finally clicked. Kakashi hadn't been called Senpai before, he himself was still young even if he was 4 years older than Yamato. Most people probably saw him as a kid, not someone to be respected so highly.

"It is to me." He beamed, pushing his hands forward with the gift still in them "you're my hero."

Kakashi looked like he was about to argue for a second, only stopping when Gai gave him a little nudge on the shoulder. Apparently Gai was the 'Kakashi whisperer' that Yamato had always needed before. 

"I told you not to get me a gift." He grumbled in replacement, even as he reached out to pick up the small piece of cloth laying in Yamato's hand "this...Yamato, this is a child's scarf."

"Well, it's a gift for you but I thought it could be something that Pakkun wore." He explained shyly "he seemed really upset when you took the leaf village headband off of him, and I know it's not the same but…" 

A pair of arms came down around his neck, pulling him into a crushing hug. It was surprising. Kakashi had never seemed like the hugging type of person. 

"You found his weak spot." Gai joked behind his friend, laughing when Kakashi glared back at him "admit it, you'd do anything for your ninkin."

"Doesn't mean you need to say it out loud." Kakashi huffed. 

Extracting himself from Yamato, he wasted no time in bringing his hand up to his mouth and biting down on his thumb. His hands weaved into the summoning jutsu with an easy familiarity, ultimately coming down on Yamato's shoulder to produce a puff of smoke that dissipated to reveal Pakkun in his usual gruffness. 

"What do you need this time, pup?" Yamato held back a laugh at the nickname. Pakkun was a much more affectionate dog when he wasn't being summoned for a mission and it was kind of cute.

"Yamato got you something." Bored black eyes gazed up at him, "It's good Pakkun so be nice."

"Well, at least I'll get to tell the others you went maskless for a day." The tiny pug mused "they always get upset when they miss these rare days." 

Kakashi rolled his eyes, his hand coming up and opening so that Pakkun could see the soft Green scarf sitting in his palm "do you want it or not?"

Pakkun seemed to examine the scarf for a moment, leaning forward slowly and giving it a careful sniff.

"It has no smell." He huffed, allowing his front Paws to flop forward over Yamato's shoulder so that he was laying down. 

"Smell?" Yamato looked at the older boy for an explanation "wouldn't that impede his hunting abilities if there was a strong smell around his neck?"

"It doesn't work like that for the nindog's. As long as they're concentrated on a targets scent nothing can break that focus." Kakashi clarified, draping the scarf around his own neck when Pakkun refused to take it "give it a few hours and we'll see if there's a scent."

Pakkun just nodded his head, holding his paws out towards Kakashi and waiting for his Summoner to get the hint. A smile tugged at Yamato's lips when Kakashi reached out and gently lifted the pug off of his shoulder, tucking an arm under the small dog and bringing him up against his chest.

"So, food?" Yamato reminded the other two, laughing when Gai ignored him in favor of reaching out to scratch a finger behind Pakkun's ear. 

"Let's go for the ramen shop we heard about." Kakashi glanced over at Gai for confirmation, a shadow of a smile tugging at his lips when Gai nodded his head. "It'll be a nice change of pace from all the meat and fish."

"I haven't had Ramen in a while." Yamato nodded "it sounds great."

With their destination decided, Yamato waited for Kakashi and Gai to start walking and easily fell into place beside them, watching in Amusement as the pair of Friends took turns petting Pakkun's head. 


	7. Heartbreak and Bloodshed

The Ramen shop had ended up being the best idea for a night out. Every other place the trio had passed on the way looked crowded and noisy, the kind of place that would impede any conversations they attempted to have while at the same time aggravating Kakashi. 

They found the opposite problem at the small Ramen shop that they had located in a small side street. There was almost no one else there, providing a pleasant silence that allowed the three of them to chat easily while they enjoyed their food.

Kakashi would chalk it up to a perfect night in most cases. Delicious food, cheerful company, lots of attention seeking from Pakkun, and more than enough Physical contact between himself and Gai to make his night ideal. 

The problem arose when two other customers decided to make their stop at the same shop. Most of the time a few more people wouldn't have bothered Kakashi, but this wasn't just extra bodies. This was newcomers who made a point of staring at both himself and Gai while chatting to themselves about how best to approach the two men. 

Specifically, it was two women. Beautiful by most people's standards, but of no interest to Kakashi. Women had never really caught his eye, not that many men did these days either. He usually only ever found himself looking at one, and that man currently had his eyes on the pretty lady with long black hair and flirty eyes.

"Gai," he placed a hand over the other man's right arm in an attempt to get his attention back "you said you wanted to go for a walk…"

"Just a moment." He didn't quite understand the sudden pain in his heart, though it was familiar. Less intense than the other times he had felt it, and with a lot less blood on his hands, nevertheless it was still there. It still hurt. 

Still, he continued in vain to regain Gai's attention. It was supposed to be his night, that's what Gai had told him. The focus was supposed to be on him, not some strange new woman. 

Behind him he could hear Tenzo shifting awkwardly. He figured it was a tense scene, Kakashi trying to get Gai's attention away from the pretty lady who had come into sight. It must have looked pathetic. Tenzo shouldn't have to sit there observing as he tried desperately to become the focus of attention again. He was ANBU trained after all, he was supposed to go unnoticed. 

Things were only going to get worse though, he could tell that much when the woman who had caught Gai's gaze stood up from her seat and started to walk over. 

His hand snapped out, wrapping around Gai's bicep while his fingers curled the fabric of his Hanfu and started to tug gently. "Come on." A wave of relief washed over him when Gai finally turned his eyes back to him "We can pay and go for that walk. It'll be nice."

"We'll go in a second." Gai smiled that beautiful smile, the one that always made Kakashi's heart melt. This time, however, it caused nothing but pain. Why was Gai so interested in some stranger? Why was he ignoring Kakashi suddenly when for years Kakashi couldn't get him to leave him alone? 

"You three must be new here." His eyes shot up, narrowing towards the intruder. His fingers continued to cling to Gai's Hanfu, refusing to let go ever when he turned his attention back to the woman. "I haven't seen you around before."

"We've only been around for a few weeks." Gai's voice was as cheerful as ever "my friend isn't much for crowds so we haven't had the chance to explore the village much yet."

"That's too bad." She propped herself up against the counter with an elbow, her eyes locking onto Gai's. "If you want, we could show you around. The garden is beautiful at this time of night."

Every alarm went off in Kakashi's mind. He didn't want more people joining them, he wanted the opposite. He wanted to get Gai as far away from this woman as possible. 

Gai, for once, didn't seem to get the picture. It was as if Kakashi had vanished in his mind, replaced completely by this new beautiful target. 

"It would be nice to have a guided tour." There was that softness in his voice. Kakashi had only ever heard it was directed at him or someone who was injured or scared. Hearing it directed at someone new, someone who could be much more than a friend…

It felt like a hot sword was piercing his heart. 

His hand dropped from Gai's Hanfu, giving up on it's goal of getting his friends attention and focusing instead on helping Kakashi stand up from his seat.

"Kakashi-Senpai…" He ignored Yamato's voice calling out to him, his feet moving to leave the shop as quickly as possible once he had thrown down some money for their food. 

He needed to get out, far away from this whole situation. 

"Incoming." Pakkun's voice was soft in his ear, a small warning before a hand came down on his shoulder and forced him to stop in his tracks.

"Kakashi, where are you going?" Gai's attention was on him again, so why didn't his heart hurt any less? Why did he still feel like curling up under a blanket and never coming out again. "You seemed to really want to go on that walk. Don't tell me you've changed your mind."

"I...i'm just tired." He lied, shrugging his shoulder out of Gai's grasp easily "you go ahead. I think I'm going to turn in for the night."

"Do you want me to come with you?" Always so thoughtful. Why did he always have to be so damn thoughtful? "I'm sure we can make plans with the girls for a later day."

Oh.

Somehow that comment hurt more than anything. Gai really did want to spend his time with that girl, just not if Kakashi was upset. 

Mustering up all his strength, he turned himself around and forced his eyes to meet Gai's. To not show his hurt or sadness. It was easy, sadness had become an emotion he learned well how to hide, even when it was the only one that wanted to make itself visible. 

"Don't worry about me." He closed his eyes, silently wishing his mask was in place so that it looked like he was smiling. "You enjoy yourself. Just don't get into too much trouble."

Gai seemed to examine him for a moment, trying to decipher if Kakashi was telling him the truth or not. "If you're sure…"

"It's ok Gai." He said softly "you know me. I'd just ruin the night and confuse people. It's better if I just head back to the house. You have fun." 

With that said, he turned his back to his friend and continued to walk away. He didn't need to look back to know that Gai was still watching him, making sure that he was okay.

A part of him wanted to laugh. Just a day ago he was convinced that Gai's concerns for him meant something more. That it signified something deeper than friendship. That maybe, possibly, Gai had felt the same way about him. 

For a genius, he really was pretty stupid. 

* * *

Once he was back at the small Cabin Kakashi made a beeline for his bedroom, dragging his sleeping bag away from Gai's just enough to create a space between them. 

"He's going to ask questions tomorrow." Pakkun mused from his shoulder.

"Why should he?" Kakashi huffed in response "He has a pretty new girl. He doesn't need me cuddling up to him in my sleep like an idiot." 

"I wouldn't call you an idiot." Pakkun objected, nudging his chin with a cold wet nose "everyone make's assumptions and mistakes." 

"An assumption is thinking 'oh this cute guy likes me.'" He argued, standing up in his spot and starting to take off his jacket. Pakkun moved with the fabric easily, allowing the jacket to slip out from under him without having to give up his spot on Kakashi's shoulder. "I thought…he seemed so worried when he asked me to leave…"

"Friends can worry about each other kid." He knew that. He knew it better than anyone after what happened to his father, but it didn't change his feelings. Who the hell gave up their village and everything they had grown up with for a friend?" "Sometimes they can even…"

"Friends aren't supposed to do that for each other." His hand dropped down to his side, clutching the black jacket tightly as he tried to force back the tears. "Friend's don't...you don't give up absolutely everything for a friend." 

"You once risked your life to save him." Pakkun reminded him "you almost died protecting him."

"That's different…" his hand relaxed, allowing his jacket to pool down on the ground beside his feet "i would have done anything to protect Obito, rin, Minato Sensei. They were my friends. They were the people who were important to me, the people i failed to protect…but Gai…"

Pakkun didn't expect him to finish his sentence, he didn't have to. He had been there with Kakashi through everything. He was always the one summoned when Kakashi was upset or alone. When he needed someone but didn't think he could ask anyone else. 

"It's still hard for you." He pointed out, nudging his nose up against the soft green fabric of his new scarf and sighing when he could smell Kakashi on it. "You're a genius pup, in everything except emotions." 

"Why is it so hard?" Kakashi's voice cracked as the tears started to run down his face. "Why does it hurt so much?"

"I don't have an answer for that." Pakkun admitted. Relationships aren't exactly his area of expertise. It's one of the many reasons him and Kakashi had connected when Sakumo summoned him in front of his son the first time. Their personalities were similar, creating a bond between them that outweighed Kakashi's bond with the other Ninkin. "Get some sleep Pup, you'll feel better in the morning." 

Doing as he was told, Kakashi crawled in between the flaps of his sleeping bag and pulled his pillow close, observing Pakkun as he crawled off of his shoulder and curled up right beside his neck with his nose buried into the small green scarf.

"Don't leave me." He whispered, his eye lid sliding down and closing over the one good eye he always kept open.

"Not a chance, Pup."

* * *

The house was quiet when Kakashi woke up the next morning, and Gai's bed was oddly empty. It was strange. 

It only got stranger when he went to Yamato's room to check up on him, only to find that his bed was equally as empty. 

"They might have gotten up early." Pakkun offered as an explanation, hopping up onto Kakashi's shoulder as he searched around the small cabin before heading outside to search the surrounding area. "Doesn't Gai like to train early in the morning?"

"Ya, and he's loud when he does." Kakashi huffed "besides, he usually make breakfast if he's first up, and he wakes up at 5am. It's 8. He'd be done training by now." 

"Perhaps the weather turned against them before they could leave the village?" The tiny Pug mused "It smells like there was some rain last night, they might have taken shelter in an inn for the night.

"We're 20 minutes out of the village." Kakashi huffed, pulling his mask up over his face and jumping towards the nearest tree branch "what reason could they have to be this late?"

"Well, you have me on that one." He shrugged, "I take it we're going to go find them."

"I did not drag Tenzo out of Anbu to have him die on a night out." Kakashi growled "and Gai…"

"I'm sure if anyone tried to kill him they quickly found themselves face first on the ground." Kakashi couldn't argue with that. Gai was a lot stronger than anyone had ever given him credit for. Still, something deep down in his gut told him something was wrong. 

"I'll go take a sniff of Yamato's vest." Pakkun stated "meet you in the village." With that said, the small pug disappeared from his shoulder and headed back towards the cabin. Usually Kakashi would wait for his summon to return to his side before heading off in search of their target, but his gut told him he didn't have time today.

Without another thought he jumped through the air, using the next branch to continue on his way back towards the village. 

* * *

Yamato grunted when another burst of water hit his defenses, soaking through the wood but still not managing to break it. "Isn't there something more you can do!?" He demanded, turning his attention over to Gai as he threw down another attack. 

"This is an army kid, an army of shinobi!" That was a fair assessment, but this still wasn't exactly how Yamato had wanted to spend his morning. 

Hell, he hadn't even wanted to spend his night stuck in the village, but the rain had made it an unpleasant thought to head back to the cabin last night. The only thing he was thankful for was the moment Gai had turned down his new friends invitation to stay at her house for the night. 

There was no way he would have come out of that situation without mental scars after the way she had been clinging to Gai the entire night, flirting and making every pass she could towards him. 

Another blast hit his wall, sending water spraying down on the villagers that were currently hiding behind him for protection. He used the next moment to weave some quick signs, sending a wooden column blasting out from his spot and smacking into a small row of shinobi directly in front of him. 

This would be done a lot faster if Kakashi was with them, not that Gai wasn't doing a fair amount of damage himself. He had already taken out a good chunk of the intruders himself, but even from his spot behind his wall Yamato could see that opening the 4th gate to fight was taking its toll on the other shinobi. 

"If this goes on too long the village is going to take damage!" He called out, sighing when Gai sent another small group of Shinobi flying backwards. 

"I can see that much, kid!" Gai screamed back, a yell erupting from his lungs when he kicked out at another attacker only to take a Kunai to the leg. 

This was bad. This was very, very bad. 

He wanted to move out of his spot and help Gai, but if he did, he risked leaving the villagers unprotected and they were the targets of this raid. They were the one's attacking shinobi wanted to kill in order to take over the village. He couldn't leave them without protection.

"Tenzo!" His head snapped up, eyes zeroing in on Kakashi as he landed on top of the wall "keep your focus on the villagers. You're our best line of defense for them!"

With a nod of his head, Yamato jumped backwards a bit and started to weave his hands together mid air, pressing them against the ground just as his old wall finally broke down under the constant attacks and watching as a new one sprang up in front of him. 

Kakashi-Senpai was here now, that meant Gai wasn't alone in his fight. they could take care of the attacking shinobi together. He knew they could.

* * *

Springing down from his spot, Kakashi ignored the crumbling wall behind him and focused his chakra on his right hand. Chidori burst to life with a familiar ease, and as soon as his feet hit the ground Kakashi used the speed produced from his attack to burst towards Gai, striking his next attacker through the heart without a thought. 

"You're late." Gai accused him in a playful tone. 

"And you're injured." He shot back "are you still able to fight?"

"Do you really think I'd let a small Kunai injury stop me?" He rolled his eyes. Gai was always so proud and stubborn, it was likely to get him killed one of these days. "I take it you have a plan already?"

"As long as you can fight we'll break through them." He nodded "keep our backs to each other and our eyes on the enemy. Take out the ones you can see are weaker first, there's a lot more of them." 

"And when they're out of the way?" Gai pressured for further information as he turned his back to Kakashi and got into a fighting stance "what then?"

"Then we team up against the stronger one's." He stated simply "they may be more skilled, but even if they're stronger than one of us, they can't beat both of us."

"You telling me you think we're stronger than even the strongest shinobi here!?" Gai smirked 

"Together?" His hand sparked back to life, electricity flying in every direction as he leveled his gaze on the group directly in front of him "always." 

* * *

Blood dripped from Kakashi's fingers, staining his skin with a stench that was all too familiar to him. 

The fighting had taken forever, and he was sure both himself and Gai had their fair share of injuries from their attackers, but the goal had been reached. Their attackers had turned their backs on them and started to retreat, leaving behind their goals of conquest in favor of survival.

Well, all except one had turned heel and run for the hills. There was always one of course. Too proud to admit they might be beat, or just wanting to fight it out to the end. 

Hell, usually that person was him, letting his allies run off towards safety as he took care of protecting their backs without a care for whether he came out alive or not. 

He glanced over at Gai, watching as he rubbed his wrist for the fifth time since he had joined the fight. It was clear that he had likely torn some muscles thanks to opening the fourth gate, but Kakashi couldn't risk letting him close the gate yet. 

They had to get through this last fight, take down one more enemy, before Gai could relax. He'd just have to do his best to make sure Gai didn't take anymore damage. 

"You doing ok?" Of course Gai was concerned about him, he always was. 

"I'm fine." He promised "i'll be even better once this is done and we can relax."

"Definitely not the best wake up call." Gai nodded "let's finish it up quickly and go for lunch."

Lunch? Was it already that time of day?

Damn ...fighting really had taken them longer than he thought. He could agree to the plans though, his stomach was completely empty after missing breakfast in favor of looking for his friends. 

They just needed to take care of this last little problem first.

"I'll buy lunch." He closed his eyes, a warm feeling bursting in his heart when Gai smiled back at him. Maybe he still had a chance after all. 

"Then we're going for dumplings." Gai decided, bursting forward with incredible speed and striking out towards their enemy, his fist colliding with the man's arm with a painful crunch.

He really hoped it was the other guys arm making that sound. 

Reaching back, Kakashi unsheathed his brand new Tanto for the first time and bolted forward, taking Gai's place as his friend jumped backwards to avoid an attack and bringing the weapon down across the other man's face.

There was a scream of anguish, but Kakashi didn't have time to celebrate his hit. Before his feet had even hit the ground an arm came out and struck him in the ribs, sending him flying off to the side. 

His shoulder hit the ground first, allowing him to roll into the fall and come out on his feet. The only sign that he had even been hit was the sharp pain in his side. 

Thankfully, as soon as Kakashi had been sent flying out of the way Gai had taken his place and started to barrage the enemy with physical attacks. 

It gave Kakashi the chance he needed for the perfect attack. He was thankful that he had suggested Pakkun go back to the others when they had arrived to see the attack happening on the village. It was easier if they all came out at once.

The blood on his tanto was everything he needed to end this fight. Snatching his summoning scroll from his back pouch and snapping it open, Kakashi rubbed the blood onto his hand before transfer it onto the scroll and threw it into the air. The scroll closed on it's own midair, falling back into his hands carefully as he focused his Chakra. 

"Earth Style: tracking fang technique." As soon as he had called out the attack, Gai made sure to jump backwards, leaving space between himself and their enemy while the hound dogs searched out their target.

Surprise was etched on the enemy's face when the ninkin came bursting out of the ground, each latching onto a limb and holding him down with their combined weight. 

Kakashi wasted no time after that, focusing his chakra in his right hand he listened to the sound of birds chirping surround the area and bolted forward. 

His feet slammed into the ground suddenly, lurching him forward as the chidori died away from his hand and he came to a hard stop in front of a kid no older than him. 

Blood rushed into his ears, blocking out all the sounds around him. He had almost done it again, he had almost taken a life not meant to be taken. Not meant to be cut short.

"Kakashi!" A hand came down on his shoulder, pulling him backwards as Gai took his place in front of their opponent "get out of here!" 

It was the only thing he could hear. The only thing that cut through all the pain and silence. His eyes traveled down to his hands, finally taking in the sight of blood soaked skin and letting it sink in. 

"No…" he took a step back, unable to control the tremors that coursed through his body. 

"Kakashi Senpai!" His legs snapped under him, sending him flying into the air before either Yamato or Gai could stop him.

The battle was done. It was won and everyone was safe.

So why did he still feel so sick, looking down at all the bloody corpses lying in the dirt below. They had attacked the village, they had wanted to cause harm.

So why did their blood burn on his hand as if it was Rin's?


	8. Chapter 8

Kakashi scrubbed his hands viciously under the flow of the river, trying desperately to wash away the painful feeling that had soaked into him. The blood was long gone, not even a speck left on his skin, but he continued to rub. He couldn't stop, not yet. Not until every sick feeling in the pit of his stomach was gone. 

"Kakashi." Gai's voice was followed by a hand on his shoulder.

Gai had learned a while ago that it was best to inform Kakashi of his presence rather than risk surprising him. 

Still, he continued to scrub. Desperate to get the stench off of his hands and the sick feeling out of his gut.

"Kakashi's, it's ok." The voice moved to his side, Gai's face becoming visible in his peripheral's even as he continued to scrub. "You didn't hurt them."

"Why…" his voice cracked as tears ran down his face, "Why do people...why do they keep doing that? Why do people keep trying to use me to die!?"

He didn't need to look at Gai to know what emotions had taken over his face. He had seen that sadness far too often when it came to him.

He always made Gai sad, maybe that was why Gai wanted to be with someone else. Maybe Kakashi was bad for him. 

"They weren't trying to die." Gai tried to convince him, reaching out and carefully wrapping a hand around his left wrist so that he could pull his hand out of the water "they were trying to protect someone they love."

He didn't believe it. He couldn't. Who would willingly throw themselves in front of a deadly attack to protect someone? Why wouldn't they just attack the person threatening their world? It's what he did. It's what he had always done when Gai was in trouble, or when Rin was still alive. 

"Not everyone is a shinobi Kakashi." His eyes widened with panic. Why was there a non shinobi in the battle field? One that knew an attacker from the land of waves. Shouldn't they have been back at home waiting for their army to come back safely? "They said they followed the attack squad when it was sent out. They wanted to make sure their dad came home alive."

The sick feeling in his stomach only got worse. Father? He had almost killed a father right in front of their child?

Tears poured down his face as he attempted to process everything. It was too much, too painful. He hated it all, the anger, the hatred. He hated absolutely everything about himself. 

"Come here." Gai's arm came down around his shoulders, pulling him away from the river and into a hug. His face fell against the other man's shoulder, tears staining the soft blue fabric of his Hanfu as he held Kakashi close. "It's ok. Everything is going to be ok."

* * *

Pakkun sat up on Bull's back, his eyes glued on the area that Gai had disappeared into a few minutes ago. He only sat up when he finally heard the bushes starting to rustle, signalling someone's arrival.

When the bushes finally parted, Gai stepped out into view with Kakashi tucked securely into his arms. 

"He's doing that well, huh?" He had expected as much. Kakashi had always been a quiet and closed off kid, but ever since Sakumo's death he had hidden his pain deep down inside of himself. Most of the time it was so well hidden that even Kakashi himself couldn't see how much hurt he was dealing with. 

"He just needs some rest." Gai assured the small dog "time to process what happened."

Pakkun huffed. If it had ever been that simple Kakashi would be a much different kid. He never processed any of the deaths that had happened around him well, if he was able to process them at all. 

Still, if anyone was going to stay by Kakashi's side and make sure he came out alright, it was Gai. Even if he was a bit of an idiot. 

"You'd just better hope that guy doesn't come back with a bigger army." He sighed "letting the enemy go is never a good idea."

"If it comes to that, I'll deal with it." He promised "now, i really need to get him to the cabin. I think I tore a muscle in my wrist…"

"In that case let's not waste anytime." Pakkun agreed, sitting himself back down on Bull's back "let's go."

With the order given, the hound dogs were off, each of them taking up a position around Gai as he started to move through the forest. 

* * *

Once they had arrived at the cabin, Gai headed straight for his and Kakashi's bedroom, intent on getting his friend under the warm sleeping bag he had on the floor. Though, he was a little taken aback when he stepped into the room to find that his and Kakashi sleeping bags had been separated at some point during his night away.

He was tempted to ask Pakkun what had happened, knowing the Pug had likely stayed with Kakashi the night. He had gone to Kakashi's apartment back in Konoha and found the tiny dog sleeping on top of his summoner multiple times, so it wasn't out of the question for the ninkin to stay the night. 

Still, he kept his question to himself and focused on getting Kakashi under his blankets, smiling slightly when Bull nudged the small pillow away with his nose and settled in behind Kakashi so that he could be used as a pillow instead.

"Gai!" His head snapped up when he heard Yamato's voice in the living room. He must have arrived shortly after they had. "Gai! Never EVER leave me behind there alone again!"

That was odd. For Kakashi to say such a thing would make sense, he hated being out in public alone, but in their short time together Yamato had shown no signs of sharing that social anxiety with Kakashi. 

Settling the blankets over top of Kakashi, he pushed himself to his feet and headed for the living room, leaving his friend under the protective gaze of his ninkin. 

"What could possibly be the…" he stopped mid sentence when he opened the door to see the state Yamato was in. It was kind of cute actually, except for the fact that the poor kid was bogged down with countless bags "w...what…"

"Apparently saving a village from a huge attack makes them like you...a lot." Yamato dropped the bags on top of their small dinner table with a grunt "the veggie shop, meat shop, and even just some random gifts from other villagers. They wouldn't let me leave without taking something back for all of us." 

"That is a little...excessive." he admitted "I apologize. Had Kakashi not run off i would have stayed behind with you." 

"Speaking of." Yamato's eyes scanned over to the bedroom door "how is he?"

"He's resting." Gai assured the younger man "having that kid jump in front of his attack was unsettling for him."

"Unsettling?" Yamato seemed genuinely confused by the comment "Kakashi Senpai is hardly the type of person to be...unsettled."

Gai smiled fondly at the sound of that. It seemed like Yamato still had a lot to learn about the man he held in such high regard. 

"Let's just leave him for now." He said softly, taking a step forward and examining the pile on their table "We should put this all away before he wakes up. He won't like seeing all the presents."

"Oh" Yamato's eyes snapped back to the pile "speaking of presents." He reached out and opened one of the bags, sifting through it before pulling out a bright blue cloak "your admirer said she was sad to see your other cloak getting so dirty in the fight."

Gai examined the object in Yamato's hand for a moment, a frown pulling at his lips when he couldn't think of exactly who Yamato was talking about.

"T...the girl from last night." Yamato clarified when he noticed his confusion. "She said she was hoping you'd come back to the village soon and let her finish that tour from last night."

"Oh!" A blush crept up the back of his neck when he recalled the woman that they had met in the ramen shop "problem is, I'm unlikely to remember what she looks like…"

"I...she…" Yamato looked at him with utter confusion "long black hair, pretty eyes. Practically hanging off of you the entire night."

"Oh, I know who you're talking about." He chuckled, "I just...i have trouble recalling faces." Honestly, Yamato should not have been at all surprised by the statement. He was certain he had already forgotten who he was a few times, only remembering the poor kids name because of Kakashi's interference.

"Oh…" Yamato seemed to think it over for a second before smiling "well, i'm sure if we go to town together i can help you spot her."

It was a nice offer, but he usually preferred to have his help come from Kakashi. There had never been any judgement from his friend when he failed to remember a face.

Still, it was a good idea. Kakashi wouldn't be up to going into town again for a while after today's events. 

"Alright." He smiled, "how about we go to town tomorrow?" 

"Sounds like a plan to me." Yamato beamed "should we wait for Kakashi Senpai before we start lunch?"

Gai gave his head a shake. "He won't be up for a while." He sighed "I'll make him something when he wakes up, but he won't want me starving you until then." 

"Why do you say that?" Yamato inquired.

"Because he cares about you, kid." Gai smiled fondly "now come on. I'll make us some curry."

Yamato's face dropped. "Why is it when you cook it's always curry?"

"Because Curry is good for the soul." Gai chuckled. 


	9. Confession

Birds chirped happily somewhere in the distance, their mating calls ringing out to the objects of their affection. Or, at least any other bird that happened to be listening. 

Kakashi found it amusing. Animals had all of these different ways of trying to find their mate. The one they would spend the rest of their days with.

And then there was him, laying in the grass looking up at the sky while the only person he had ever thought he had even a small chance with was off on a date with someone else. 

"Pathetic." He muttered to himself. What was his mating call supposed to be? How was he supposed to make his feelings clear and loud when he couldn't even manage a small smile for the people who made him genuinely happy. who made life a little more bearable, a little more worth living. 

It didn't help that even Yamato seemed to want to get Gai with this pretty new girl, even sounding excited to head off into the village with their friend and help him recognize the poor girl in Kakashi's place. 

They had both been so happy that morning. Full of life and ready to tackle the next challenge, and here he was wishing he could just close his eyes and never have to worry about opening them again. 

He might even risk closing his eyes too, if it wasn't for the small pile of Mission requests he had tucked away in his pants pocket. Requests he had found stashed away in the nice little letterbox Yamato had made a few days ago. 

He still had to sort through them and decide who was going to do what mission. What team ups he'd make, and which one of them would be heading out on a mission alone. 

Why had he agreed to be the one to do this all?

Oh, right. He had nothing else to do while Gai and Yamato were out having fun. It just made sense. 

Leaves rustled under him as he sat up, his elbows coming down on his knees and his good eye leveling on a small black kitten sitting quietly by his feet. "Hello…" he reached out, offering his hand for the kitten to sniff and watching as it bumped its head against his knuckles. 

"Did you get lost out here?" He asked, rubbing a finger behind the tiny animal's ear. "It's a far ways away from decent people. I'm sure the villagers would love to pet and feed you."

He gave his head a shake. He had gotten so used to talking to Pakkun and the other hound dogs and getting a response that he had half expected the tiny kitten to start talking back to him. 

"Well, I should get back." He sighed, shoving himself to his feet with a slight groan "these missions aren't going to sort themselves, and it's almost lunch time." 

Tiny claws scraped against his leg, pulling his attention down towards where the tiny kitten was now doing its best to claw its way up his body. "Don't tell me you want to go with me." It was an amusing thought, introducing the tiny kitten to Pakkun the next time he summoned the pug. He was certain he would never hear the end of it "fine, but if Pakkun asks you're Yamato's new friend."

* * *

The door creaked open, allowing Gai to slide in with Yamato close behind. "See, I told you." He beamed over at the younger ninja "Kakashi probably isn't home yet."

"That doesn't mean we should…" Yamato sighed when Gai's new friend bumped her way past him, giggling as Gai reached out to take her hand "you couldn't have had a dinner date in the village?"

"After yesterday's activities, he's going to go searching for us if we're not home when he gets back." Gai shrugged "beside, why go out to dinner when I can cook?"

"Because there is a less likely chance of Kakashi Senpai wanting to murder you?" Yamato shot back.

All three of them stopped in their tracks when Kakashi and Gai's bedroom door swung open.

"You two are the absolute loudest sneaks." The hound mused, his good eye zeroing in on their new guest "Yamato, you should be better at sneaking in than that."

"Oh, like it's my fault!" Yamato protested, grunting when another guest bumped into his back "he's the one…"

"Gai hardly needs an explanation for having guests over." Kakashi replied lazily "i'm pretty sure he'd wither away and die without social contact."

"Well, I have to make up for the lack of social contact you get." Gai beamed "i'm going to make curry…"

"The hell you are." Kakashi shoved himself away from the door, sighing when the tiny black kitten bolted out of the room and started to examine the new intruders. "You eat too much of that anyways."

"Oh Kitty!" The girl behind Yamato screeched, bending down and holding out a hand towards the tiny animal "you didn't say you had a kitten!"

"We...we didn't when we left." Yamato looked over at Kakashi for an explanation. 

"You just looked so lonely, Fluffers." Yamato glared in response to the ridiculous nickname "asleep in that big room all by yourself, i thought you could use a buddy."

"Fluffers?" The woman by Gai's side smirked as she processed the ridiculous nickname "i like it."

"Kaiya," Kakashi found himself tempted to turn around and retreat back into his bedroom away from all of the noise that had found its way into their tiny home "don't be mean. They offered to feed us." 

"But it is a cute nickname." Kaiya responded with a playful smile "especially since he's obviously the tiny fluffy one."

Well, 'fluffy' was definitely one way to describe Yamato.

Maybe this one wasn't so bad. 

Minus the fact that she was currently clinging to Gai's arm, Kakashi could see having her over again, and he'd only just met her. 

"So," the other woman stood up straight and locked her arms behind her back, a bright smile taking over her face. "If we're not having curry, what are we going to have?"

"I'm sure I can think up something." Kakashi dismissed the question with a wave of his hand and headed towards the cupboards to search through the stock they had. 

"Rival…" Gai's voice was soft beside him, a hand coming down on his shoulder as he glanced back at the other man "you're being ...nice."

"Is that out of character for me?" He asked "huh...i could fix it."

Gai shook his head "No, no i like it."

"Then what seems to be the problem?" Kakashi pushed for further information, enjoying the feeling of Gai's hand lingering on his shoulder. 

"It's just...odd." admitted Gai "usually you wouldn't be so welcoming to guests."

"Maybe being away from Konoha really is good for me." He closed his eyes, a familiar warmth spreading over him when Gai responded by wrapping his arms around his neck for a hug "beside's, you saw the pile of mission requests we had. We might be too busy over the next few days for you to see your new friends. May as well use the time we have now wisely." 

"I'm sure we'll finish them quickly." Gai smiled "none of them looked too complicated."

"Nah. A day or two at most depending on distance." Kakashi gave his shoulders a shrug "you'll be back quickly, I'm sure of it. I won't cut into your flirting time that badly."

"Maybe I could teach you how to flirt. Might help you get with someone." Kakashi reached up into the cupboard and started to pull down some ingredients for dinner. 

"Dating isn't at the top of my mind right now, Gai." He lied, determined not to ruin Gai's chance with someone who might actually be good for him. "Maybe after some time, but right now I just want to focus on myself."

"When you're ready then." The arms left their spot around his neck "it's too bad we don't have a couch…"

"Oy, Fluffers!" A small chuckle escaped when Kakashi looked back to see Yamato glaring at him "if you all want a seat we could use some more chairs, or a couch. Otherwise two of us are standing for dinner."

"Why do you hate me, Senpai?" Even with his complaints, Yamato weaved his hands together easily and produced two more chairs beside the dinner table. 

"It's not hate." He glanced back at the girls, raising an eyebrow when the brunette smiled back at him "Kaiya is the same way with me. She's always poking fun and trying to get a rise out of me."

"And nine times out of ten, it works." Kaiya smiled back at her friend "it's why you're my best friend, Akari."

"It's...just a really weird way for them to show affection." Akari giggled "i'm sure he pokes fun at Gai-kun as well."

Now he was just starting to feel called out. 

"Alright Akari, let's be nice." Kaiya smiled "he is cooking dinner for us after all."

Well, at least Gai had good taste in women. 

Speaking of Gai, Kakashi leaned over slightly and nudged his friends shoulder with his own. "Go chit chat." He insisted "I'll take care of dinner."

"As long as you promise to stick around for the eating portion of dinner." Gai smiled fondly "i don't want you thinking you need to run off and hide once the food is made."

"I wouldn't dream of it." That was a lie, but Gai didn't need to know that. He'd stick around this time for dinner, it was the only way he'd properly get to know Kaiya and make sure she was good for Gai, after all. 

* * *

A part of Kakashi considered turning around and running back towards the safety of their cabin and the comfortable bed he hadn’t seen in 4 days because of missions. He might have even attempted to do such a thing, if it wasn’t for the hand currently curled around his bicep dragging him further into Tonika. 

“Why…” he asked for what felt like the 10th time. “I just want to go to bed.”

“You can go to bed after a good meal.” Gai insisted “Kaiya and Akari invited us out to dinner, but you weren’t home yet.”

“So?” His free hand came up to cover a yawn “You could have gone with Yamato.”

“No, they invited us.” Clarified Gai “You and Me.”

Well, that was just silly. Why would they invite him? 

“Oh, don’t tell me you don’t see it.” Gai gave his head a shake “Akari likes you Kakashi. She wants to spend time with you.”

“Why would anyone want to spend time with me?” He ignored the annoyed look Gai threw him “I mean it. Other than you and Yamato people usually avoid me.”

“They might not if you didn’t think human interaction was the worst possible thing to happen to you.” Gai tugged him around the corner into a new street. “She likes you Kakashi. You know, like all the girls in Konoha who used to ask you out?”

“Oh…” Kakashi dug his heels into the ground, forcing Gai to stop and look at him “No. no i’m not...i can’t do that Gai.”

“You’re always so squeamish.” Gai argued “it’s just a double date Kakashi, you’ll do fine.”

He shook his head “No, you don’t understand.”

“Then what is it?” Gai narrowed his eyes “are you just peopled out today?”

“No! Well, i mean yes.” It was true. He was tired and really wanted nothing more than to go home and curl into his bed. “But that’s not...I don’t like girls. Not like...romantically.”

Gai seemed to process the statement for a second, a soft smile tugging at his lips when Kakashi’s words finally sunk in. “Is that why you always told those girls no?” He asked “you should have just told me sooner. I thought you just wanted to avoid everyone.”

“Well, i mean...that’s not wrong either.” he elaborated. “I don’t really… look at people. I’m not interested in dating just anyone.” It was easy to tell from the look on his face that Gai was confused. “Look, i’m demisexual. I can’t really imagine dating just anyone. I need to... to trust them. To have a connection with them that doesn’t just happen from meeting once. It has to be built up.”

“Oh.” Gai beamed “then you must still be looking for a particular person.”

That wasn’t exactly true, but Kakashi wasn’t going to be the one to ruin Gai’s date night by telling him the truth. That the only person he could ever imagine opening himself up to romantically was standing directly in front of him.

“Look, I'll go to dinner with you. I’m hungry and I probably don’t have the energy to cook for myself before going back to the cabin to collapse, and I have to report to the people whose requests i took care of tomorrow, so I need to be up early, but this isn’t a date for me. I’m just…”

Gai’s hand came down on his shoulder “don’t worry about it, Rival,” he smiled that dazzling smile that made Kakashi’s heart melt “I’m sure Akari will understand.”

“Uhh...ya.” with that conversation over, Gai brought his hand back down to Kakashi’s bicep and continued to lead him down the street towards a situation he wanted absolutely nothing to do.

At least one of them was happy.

* * *

  
The date night had been uneventful for Kakashi. Gai had spent the majority of their time regaling Akari and Kaiya with stories of old missions or challenges, while almost completely ignoring Kakashi’s existence except for the old shoulder bump and a smile thrown his way.

It was horrid. Every nerve in his brain screamed to run for it. To head back home and hide away before he had to see Gai sliding up closed to Kaiya again, or Kaiya placing her hand over Gai’s for the 50th time. 

If it wasn’t for the fact that Akari looked equally as awkward, he would run. If he did though, it would be less of a failed double date and more of an awkward third wheel situation and Kakashi wasn’t a monster. A killer yes, but not a monster.

“What about you two?” Kaiya’s question pulled him out of his thoughts and back to the conversation at hand “You two fought so well together when those other shinobi attacked the village, you must have been in battle together before.”

“Many times.” Gai beamed, turning his smile towards Kakashi once more “though we weren’t on the same team, we have had our fair share of missions together.”

“Ya, and every time you were an insubordinate little shit.” Kakashi returned the blinding smile with a lazy look “you never listened to orders.”

“Is that true Gai?” Kaiya asked with a playful smile “were you not listening to your team captain.”

“My team captain was usually being hard headed and not listening to reason.” Gai argued “I was simply doing what needed to be done.”

“Almost getting yourself killed is not ‘doing what needed to be done’.’ Kakashi shot back “if it wasn’t for me going back for you, you would have died at least twice.”

“But then we got to fight together.” the warmth in his belly grew when Gai’s usual blinding smile was replaced with a soft, fond smile. “Back to back we beat our enemies.”

“Like always.” Kakashi agreed, diverting his eyes when Kaiya reached out and took hold Gai’s hand once again “look Gai, it’s getting late and I'm exhausted...”

“I’ll head out with you.” He glanced over at Akari, watching as she shoved herself up to her feet as soon as the option to leave had been made available. “Let these two continue being cute.”

“Will you be fine getting back to the cabin alone?” worry dripped in Gai’s words. Kakashi had been gone for days. Days when he couldn’t be there to make sure his friend was getting enough sleep and taking care of himself. He always seemed to worry about him a little more when they had short or long periods of time without seeing each other. 

“I’ll be fine.’ he closed his eyes, glad that Gai always seemed to understand the gesture as his way of smiling, even without the mask over his face to cover his actual lack of smile. 

Gai seemed to examine him for a moment, thinking through his options before sighing. “Alright.” he relaxed his shoulders “I'll see you tomorrow then.”

“Tomorrow.” Kakashi agreed, waving a goodbye towards the pair as he turned around and headed for the door with Akari at his side. 

The only good feeling left inside of him as he left the restaurant was the idea that Kaiya was the best option for Gai. Someone who deserved all of that love and Kindness.

Every other part of his body screamed out that something was wrong. That he needed to turn around and storm his way back over to Gai’s side and spill his guts.

He ignored that part of him,intent on getting as far away as possible before he could turn around and ruin something good for Gai. something that had to be infinitely better than sticking his best friend with a failure and murderer like himself.


	10. Star Gazing

Stars sparkled in the sky above, each one shining a little differently from the last. Some were bright, easy to spot where they were splattered across the pitch black sky. Some were dimmer, barely noticeable beside the blinding light of their neighbours. Others, while bright, shone in a way that one's eyes couldn't ignore. The light shifting just perfectly to catch Kakashi's attention over and over again. 

It was a beautiful sight, his second favorite, right behind Gai's blinding smile. 

"I thought you said that you were going to bed?" Gai's face appeared above his, that beautiful smile already in place as he stared down at Kakashi. "Don't tell me you couldn't find the energy to make it to the cabin."

"Sometimes it's nice to just lay outside and stargaze before bed." Kakashi watched as Gai removed himself from view, choosing instead to take a seat in the soft grass beside his best friend "it's nice to have time to stargaze again."

"I don't think we've had the chance since…" Gai paused for a moment "Your 14th birthday."

That brought back memories. Minato-Sensei had given him and Gai a few days off for his birthday, telling them to get out of the village for a while and enjoy themselves. At first Kakashi had been reluctant. He had work to do with the Anbu and no need for rest, but when Gai brought up the idea of camping and stargazing he quickly found himself agreeing.

It had only been two nights, but it was one of Kakashi's favorite memories. Fishing for their dinner, going for walks in the forest around Konoha, and laying under the stars at night with their eyes on the sky.

It had been the first time since Rin's death that Kakashi had been able to feel happy, and he had almost wanted to protest when it was time to head back to Konoha. 

A month later the nine tails attacked the village, and Kakashi's world came crashing down around him once again. 

Apparently happiness wasn't an emotion Kakashi was allowed to feel, not for long anyways. It always seemed to end badly.

"So…" he turned his attention over to Gai, watching as his friend continued to look up at the sky "how'd dinner go after i left?"

"It was great." Gai beamed "Kaiya and I went for a walk after dinner and we got to talk a lot more. I...i think i really like her."

That was good. Gai deserved everything good the world had to offer, especially if it meant keeping him away from Kakashi. With his track record, Gai would just end up dead like the others. 

"What do you like about her?" He pressed, watching the display of emotions cross over Gai's face. Confusion, admiration, joy. Apparently there was an entire emotional journey involved with thinking about Kaiya. 

"She's kind." His voice was soft when he spoke again "and she has a quick wit, and she laughs at my expressions and reactions as if they're silly. She thinks I'm funny instead of weird…"

Gai continued to gush, his voice trailing off as Kakashi tucked an arm under his head and attempted to focus on his friend's words. It was nice, hearing Gai talk about someone with so much excitement and admiration.

A part of him wished he made Gai feel that way. That Gai could gush about him like this to others, talk about his good qualities. 

Another, much stronger, part of him was glad it wasn't like that. He had gotten used to the idea of being alone when he was 12 and realized that he couldn't see himself ending up with just anyone.

He had accepted a lonely future when he was 14, out camping with Gai, and felt that first ping of longing. The first moment that he realized that he had found the one person he could see himself spending the rest of his life with, and realized that he never wanted to subject Gai to such a fate.

"You're ridiculous." The fond jab tugged him back towards reality, his mind a little fuzzy as a pair of hands tucked themselves under his shoulder and hip and forced him to fall forward towards Gai's chest. 

"Sorry." He didn't need to ask what he had done to earn such a comment, he could feel the sleepiness taking over as Gai lifted him up off of the ground and curled his arms around him carefully. It wasn't the first time Gai had carried him, Chakra exhaustion and overall physical exhaustion had become a large part of Kakashi's life ever since Rin had transplanted Obito's sharingan into his eye socket. It was nice though, having at least one more chance to bury his nose into Gai's chest and enjoy that warm familiar smell. 

There was no guarantee Gai would continue being so openly affectionate with him now that he had a girlfriend. This might have been his last chance at such closeness. As much as he wanted to force himself back and remind himself that Gai wasn't his, that he would never be his if he wanted him to stay safe and alive, he also wanted to stay in this moment for as long as possible. Tucked away in kind arms, with a smell that surrounded him and made him feel safe. 

He really was going to miss this. 


	11. Gift Shopping

Missions these days were officially boring. There was never any major fighting, and if a fight did happen it was hardly ever against someone who Kakashi needed to go all out against. Really, in a lot of ways Kakashi was wasting his talents. If it wasn't for training mornings and his spars with Gai and Yamato he was certain he'd get soft. 

Not that he was really complaining. It was a nice break from the constant stream of S ranked missions he had back in Konoha. A change of pace that left him with a lot more time for his friends, and less blood on his hands. 

"Kakashi Senpai," he glanced over towards Yamato, raising an eyebrow when he noticed the kid had a serious look on his face "when are you going to start letting me go on missions without you or Gai?" 

Oh, he was complaining about that again.

"When you're older." Kakashi said with a shrug of his shoulders "15, 16 maybe." He could see that the answer was bother Yamato. It always bothered him when Kakashi wouldn't let him do mission's alone for some reason. "You're still a kid Tenzo, most people in Konoha would be on a team with two others and a Jonin leader at your age."

"Ok, but i'm not your average kid." Yamato argued "I was trained by root from Genin to Chunin. I've done missions alone before."

"So had i." It was a true fact. Minato Sensei had taken Kakashi on as a student when he had graduated the academy ahead of his peers and he had even done simple missions on his own at lord Third's recommendation, and then when his peers finally graduated he had been shoved into a three man team.

Back then he had said the same thing to Minato Sensei. "I don't need to be guarded" or "I've already done mission's alone" and every single time Minato Sensei had smiled that soft kind smile and put a hand in his hair and told him to wait. That he would get his own missions again one day, but learning to work with others was also important.

If only he had learned that lesson quicker. Before Obito had died to save his life. Before he found himself standing in front of Rin with a hand through her chest and tears in his eyes. 

Still, that wasn't an explanation that had worked on him and he doubted it would do much better with Yamato. "It's not that I don't think you can handle yourself, Tenzo," he explained, trying to figure out the best way to word his next sentence "it's just…"

"I'm too young." Yamato sighed in defeat

"Well, no." He narrowed his eyes "I mean, I guess in a way yes, but I'd be a hypocrite to say so since i was doing solo missions when i was younger than you. But at the end of the day, it's not that you're too young. It's that I have a responsibility to make sure you're safe."

"That's...not your job." Yamato protested 

"It is though," he closed his eyes, glad that Yamato had finally learned to understand the gesture as his attempt at a smile "not because you need to be protected, but because you're still a kid. You're still learning and growing and I want to make sure you learn a better way than what Danzo taught you. The way my Sensei tried to teach me before he died." 

"And you think i'll learn that by being on missions with you and Gai?" Yamato pressed for more information. 

"Maybe not from me, i'm not exactly the best example." Kakashi admitted "but with Gai for sure. He's always making sure that he acts as a team member. that he's taking care of himself and his team and that no one thinks they're expendable."

"But...we're shinobi." He had seen that argument coming. It was one he heard a lot of during his time in the Anbu, one he had heard Minato sensei try to convince other soldiers out of. "We're supposed to be expendable."

His feet came to a stop. He had said those exact words to Minato Sensei once, and he could still remember the sadness in the older man's eyes. The way his smile faded away and his hand started to twitch. Back then he didn't know if it was because of what he had said, or because he had said it when he was only 6 years old. 

He only learned it was both after he had joined a team with Obito and Rin, and Obito had tried to argue against those exact words. Minato Sensei had been so proud of Obito that day, it had made Kakashi a little jealous. But then Minato Sensei had explained that everyone was raised to believe what Kakashi had said. That there was no wrong in saying those words, but that he hoped the future held a view much more similar to Obito's. 

"Shinobi exist to protect others." He quoted his Sensei's words "That doesn't make them expendable or their lives less valuable. It just means they have the skills to do something many others can't. When i know you believe those words, then i'll let you go on missions on your own." 

Yamato seemed to think about the statement for a second, nodding his head after a moment. "Ok" he smiled that happy smile that he always seemed to have. It was a wonder, how Yamato had been raised in such a dark and emotionless organization and still managed to come out to expressive and kind. 

"Now," he turned his attention back to the shops around them, trying to spot one that would have something that would be appropriate for Gai's birthday "let's find Gai a birthday gift before we head back. Sunagakure has some of the most amazing things I have ever seen so we shouldn't pass up this chance while we're here." 

"What would he even want though," Yamato complained "he never gives any clue about the things he likes."

"Gai's pretty easy to buy for actually." Kakashi reasoned "sure, he doesn't talk about what he likes a lot but he's also not quiet about the things he enjoys." 

"I am not buying him curry." Kakashi snorted in response, glad that his mask was in place when Yamato glanced over at him "did you just.. "

"Sh...shut up." He protested, making a beeline towards the nearest store to avoid any further conversation about the ridiculous sound he had just made. 

The first shop had nothing that would meet Gai's tastes, and the same went for the second and third shop that Kakashi went to. The fourth shop showed more promise though, with a variety of Animal statues and pictures.

"Here," he reached back and grabbed Yamato's wrist, tugging the kid towards the small statue that he had found "Gai has been talking about decorating the place for a while now, a nice statue for the window would be something he'd love."

"If you think he'd like it, shouldn't you get it for him?" Yamato argued.

"No, no i want to get him something else." Kakashi's mouth thinned in concentration. "Just...if you can find something with tortoise's i know for a fact he would love it, and he'd appreciate that you bought his favorite animal." 

"Him and his tortoises" Yamato sighed, his eyes already starting to scan through the store's selection of statues "you'd think he'd love them a little less when his summon is an old grump." 

"Ningame has his moments." Kakashi assured the younger boy "now, I'm going to check out some other shops. Meet back at the village gates in an hour?"

"Sounds like a plan" Yamato nodded "see you then Senpai."

"Ya," kakashi waved away the term of respect. It still didn't sit well with him, no matter how much Yamato told him that he was his 'hero' or that he 'looked up to him'. "See you then."

With Yamato's search under way, Kakashi left the shop and started to search through the rest of the small places scattered around the village for a gift that was worthy of Gai. 

* * *

Half an hour Kakashi still had nothing to show for his efforts. Statues, pictures, vases. Nothing screamed out to him as a gift that Gai would love. Something that Gai deserved for all he had done for Kakashi in their lifetimes. 

He was just about at his limit with people too, debating whether it was time to give up and head back to the village gates to wait for Yamato. The idea didn't stick though. Sunagakure had one of the best shopping areas in the land, places that he had heart other shinobi and regular citizens of Konoha and Tonika gushing about. 

There had to be a shop that had the gift he was looking for, even if he didn't actually know what kind of gift that was. 

His eyes scanned through the options directly in front of him, weighing the pro's and con's of going into each one.

A clothing shop. Gai was more than capable of buying himself clothing, and sunagakure had a much different fashion sense than Gai. 

Exotic food shop. On one hand Gai might enjoy the food, but they were unlikely to last the week until his birthday, especially on the trip back to the land of Fire through the blazing hot desert. 

Weapons shop. Well, Gai hadn't actually brought any of his favorite weapon's with him when they left Konoha, and Tonika didn't seem to be the type of village to carry weapons for a taijutsu expert. They preferred swords and Kunai over anything else.

That was a shop worth at least exploring. 

Making his way through the crowd, he squeezed past a small cluster directly in front of the store and sighed in relief when he stepped inside to see that it was mostly empty. 

A nice break away from all of the noise that came with crowds. He appreciated that. 

Now, he just had to hope it had a gift that would be perfect for Gai. 

His eyes darted between the displays. Kunai's, long swords, Tanto's.

He bolted forward when he caught sight of a display full of nunchucks. Gai had always loved nunchucks, preferring them to any other weapon because of their resilience and lack of ability to slice a person in half half or stabbing them. 

"Not many people find themselves looking at my nunchucks." His eyes darted up, taking in the new person by his side. An older woman, a kunoichi judging by the scars that he could see on both of her arms and the exposed skin of her neck and collarbone. "Most would prefer a more deadly weapon."

"It's not for me." He corrected, pointing at the Tanto that sat on his back "my friend prefers nunchucks to any other weapon though."

"And you're looking for the perfect set for him?" He nodded his head, a little concerned about the fact that he was so easy to read. "I think I have the perfect pair."

She reached out and gave him a slight shove, forcing him to take a step back so that she could kneel down in front of the case and pick up a small wood box. The only box that seemed to be closed. 

"I've had them here for years, but no one in Sunagakure looks at them" she explained "Nunchucks are usually only used by Taijutsu masters after all." 

"Are there no Taijutsu masters in Sunagakure?" He asked, raising an eyebrow when she smiled up at him. 

"Not since the ban was put in on taijutsu only users becoming shinobi." That sounded like a stupid rule, though he could understand how it had come into effect. If it had not been for Gai, Konoha may have taken on such a rule when they were younger. They had always deemed those unable to use ninjutsu or genjutsu as 'lesser' shinobi. 

Even Kakashi had fallen into believing such stereotypes until Gai proved to him how powerful a Taijutsu user could be. 

He turned his attention back to the box when the old woman started to open it, his breath catching when he saw the nunchucks that sat on top of a soft bed of cloth. 

They were beautiful. Carved to look like dragon scales, a dark brown, and tough looking.

A weapon he personally would prefer not to have used against him. A normal set of nunchucks could leave a nasty bruise, these one's looked like they could destroy a person. 

"The man who made them named them 'Soshuga'" she smiled, holding the box out towards him and watching as he picked up one of the set's and examined it "it means…"

"Dragon nunchuck…" he finished for her, examining the design carefully.

These were exactly what he had been looking for. Gai would love them. 

"How much?" He asked, placing the set back in its box and reaching for his wallet.

He was thankful at that moment that they had recently gotten some missions that involved a little bit of money in return for their work. Otherwise, the 100,000 ryu price tag might have been a little too much. 

It was fine to live off of the supplies Villagers gave them in return for the missions they did, but a little pocket money never hurt, and he didn't have access to all the savings he had back in Konoha. 

With the cash handed over, Kakashi dropped his bag from his back and opened it up to put the new gift inside, intent on not losing it on the way home.

"I hope your friend enjoys them." She smiled up at him as soon as he stood up and placed the bag back on his shoulders.

"I'm sure he'll love them." He bowed his head slightly in return "thank you for the suggestion." 

Now all he had to go was headed back to the village gates and wait for Yamato. Hopefully the other shinobi had also finished shopping. The less time he had to spend dying in the heat, the better.


	12. Birthday Dinner

Today was the kind of day Kakashi would have loved to curl up under his blankets and stayed there. Not coming out, not mingling, doing nothing except sleeping and pretending that he didn't exist. 

Unfortunately, today was Gai's birthday and 'not existing' was an option that was simply not available to him. Gai had made sure to drag him out of bed, giving him sad eyes when he attempted to turn down the idea of heading into the village for dinner after a long day of sparring and relaxing by the lake. 

The only good thing that had come out of crawling out of bed was the opportunity to sit shoulder to shoulder with Gai by the river. He hadn't had this much time or physical contact with his best friend since him and Kaiya had gotten together, though he figured that would end as soon as they saw her at dinner. 

Still, at least he had the day to spend with Gai before then. It had been a good day too, quiet and relaxing. 

It had been such a good day that he found he could even tolerate the noise of the village, his body and mind relaxed for the first time in forever. 

"This way." Gai pulled him towards their destination, glancing back quickly to make sure that Yamato was still following. 

"How do you already know where everything is?" Kakashi grunted as he was pulled around another corner.

"I've spent more time in the village than you, rival." His friend smiled back at him "you'll love it, they have a great selection of food."

"If I recall correctly, you're the food lover of the group." He mused, hoping they arrived at their destination soon. 

Gai didn't respond, focusing instead on searching through the shops they passed until his eyes finally found the sign he was looking for. "Here!" He barely gave Kakashi a moment to examine the sign before dragging him into the place "they have the best curry."

A curry place, he should have known. 

"If you try to feed me anything spicy…" Gai laughed, cutting off the rest of his sentence.

"I wouldn't dream of it, rival." He promised "I would not want to embarrass you in front of everyone." 

Usually Kakashi would argue the point, but spicy food was one of the few things that could make him cry and that would prove to be embarrassing. Especially when he knew that the people of Tonika viewed him as an extremely skilled Shinobi who wasn’t known to show weakness.

How better to prove them wrong than by trying out some spicy curry and dying on the spot?

“It would be a funny sight though,” He glared over at Yamato “I’ve never seen you try to eat spicy food. It would be a new experience for me.”

“I am not dying tonight just because you want some amusement in your life.” Kakashi huffed, following Gai as he made his way through the small shop and towards a small table in the back. He was certain that Gai was headed the wrong way, there was no chance that a table that size would fit 5 people. Despite his doubts though, Gai stopped beside the small table and immediately took a seat, waving Kakashi and Yamato over when they continued to stand.

“Shouldn’t we get a bigger table?” Kakashi glanced around the shop, searching for any sign that Akira and Kaiya had already entered and were looking for them. “This will only fit the three of us.”

“There are only three of us,” He raised an eyebrow, his good eye zeroing in on Gai. “What? Are there others I should have invited?”

“Shouldn’t Akira and Kaiya be on their way?” Yamato spoke up when the words failed to leave Kakashi’s mouth “I mean, your girlfriend should be here for your birthday, shouldn’t she?”

“Oh,” a sheepish look came across Gai’s face “i...i guess i forgot to tell you two when you got back from your mission.”

Now Kakashi was intrigued. “Tell us what?” he asked, finally taking his seat beside Gai. 

Gai seemed to think about his response for a second, ultimately settling on a sigh and a soft smile. A smile, Kakashi noticed, that seemed to be directed at him more than Yamato. “Kaiya and I broke up,” he explained “well, more like she dumped me.”

Anger boiled deep down inside of Kakashi. He had trusted her with his best friend, forcing himself back and refusing to allow himself simple interactions that he had always had with Gai before just to protect the relationship between the two of them. A relationship he had trusted to be good for Gai.

“Did she...give a reason?” Yamato pressed forward, likely having noticed that Kakashi had already started to concentrate on how best to approach the subject.

“She realized that she wasn’t comfortable dating someone who might not come home one day,” Explained Gai, his eyes soft as they continued to focus on Kakashi “I mean, these day’s our missions aren't exactly dangerous but…”

“The life of shinobi is dangerous,” Kakashi finished for him “especially compared to the life of a civilian.” 

“It took her a few missions away to realize that she didn’t like the way it left her feelings,” Gai nodded “It’s not really something i can fault her for.”

That was a good point. Kakashi couldn’t be upset at the woman for wanting to protect her own heart and well being, but it still left a sick feeling in his stomach. If Kaiya wasn’t the one who would take care of Gai, it meant he was going to have to go through the whole process of Gai finding someone new and flirting with them all over again.

Possibly more than once.

“Kakashi…” a hand came down over his forehead, forcing his attention back up to Gai “are you alright? You look pale.”

“I’m fine,” he reached up, intent on shoving the hand away from his forehead only to have Gai move it a little too quickly, his fingers wrapping themselves around Kakashi’s wrist instead. “Gai, i said i’m fine.”

“I know,” his friend smiled back at him “can’t I just hold my friend’s hand?”

He could feel the blush creeping up the back of his neck, glad that his Mask was still in place so that Gai couldn’t see exactly how his words had affected him.

“So, are we still going to see them?” Yamato spoke up “I mean...they are kind of our friends and they do still live here in Tonika.”

“We broke up Yamato, we didn’t decide we hated each other,” Gai beamed “of course we’ll still see them. Kaiya said she was looking forward to seeing her favorite fluffy squishy toy.”

Now it was Yamato’s turn to go bright red. All of them knew that when Kaiya spoke of her favorite ‘fluffy squeeze toy’ she wasn’t talking about the small black kitten that shared a bed with Yamato.

“Come on,” Kakashi reached out with his free hand, picking up one of the menus from the middle of the table and flipping it open “if i have to be out in public I want to eat.”

Rather than reaching for his own menu, Gai simply shifted in a bit closer to Kakashi and glanced over his shoulder at the one that was already open in front of him, the hand that still held onto Kakashi’s wrist sliding upwards slowly and lacing their fingers together. 

A small part of Kakashi screamed to pull his hand away. To refuse to open himself up in the same way he had before Gai and Kaiya got together, not wanting to deal with the pain all over again when Gai ultimately found someone new.

He ignored that part of him, curling his fingers into the soft grasp of Gai’s hand instead and leaning in a little closer so that Gai had a better look at the menu.

It was nice, having his friend sit so close to him once again. 

Once they had decided on their dinner, Kakashi closed the menu and placed it back on the table, raising an eyebrow when he saw Yamato staring at him and Gai. “what is it?”

“Oh, n...nothing.” Yamato stammered “i just…” his eyes flashed down to where their hands now laid on the table, fingers still twisted together “ummm, presents!” he wasted no time in turning his attention towards the bag at his side, picking it up and plopping it down in front of Gai. “I just...wanted to give Gai his present.”

This was one of Kakashi’s favorite sights. A flustered Yamato was adorable, and he never seemed to know what to do with himself when he got that way.

“You didn’t have to get me a present,” Gai smiled, his free hand reaching out to pull the bag a little closer. He leaned forward, peeking inside of the bag instead of letting go of Kakashi’s hand so he could take the gift out of the bag “is that…”

“Kakashi Senpai said you were looking for something to decorate our house,” Kakashi lowered his eyes when Gai glanced over at him “And he said you like tortoises…”

“I love tortoises,” Gai smiled fondly “It’s thanks to my summons that i still have something from my grandma.”

“I..what?” Yamato blinked, obviously trying to process what he had just heard “how…”

“When my Papa died, I obviously had to go through all of his things,” Gai smiled a sad smile “while I was looking through his things, i found an old summoning scroll. One he had never shown me. I think it’s because he never had the capabilities to summon himself.”

“If your dad didn't teach you how to summon…” Yamato paused, giving himself a moment to think before he continued what he was saying “Who taught you? I mean, it’s hard for any person to learn how to summon on their own.”

“Oh, I tried to ask Choza Sensei to teach me but he doesn’t have a summon of his own,” Gai beamed “He was a bit lost at what to tell me, but he sent me to Minato Senpai.”

“The fourth Hokage taught you how to summon?” Yamato’s eyes widened “that must have been amazing.”

“Minato-Sensei was actually on his way out for a solo mission when Gai approached him,” Kakashi corrected the younger Shinobi “he told Gai that he’d show him how to summon when he got back, but Gai had this really sad look on his face when he was told he had to wait…”

“You would have had the same look on your face if someone had told you you couldn’t learn to summon Pakkun and the nindogs yet.” Gai protested.

“Either way,” Kakashi dismissed his friends outburst “Minato Sensei decided it was a perfect moment for me to learn how to teach others.”

“Oh,” a sly smile came across Yamato’s face, one Kakashi did not like at all. “So you…”

“Very reluctantly,” Kakashi pointed out in his defense “i am not teacher quality.”

“You weren't that bad,” Gai chuckled “honestly, you were a lot more patient with me than I thought you would be, and you got really upset when Obito told you to give up because I was never going to learn.”

“He was just being unnecessarily mean.” Kakashi shrugged his shoulders “still, it was worth it. The moment you finally manages to summon a very tiny ningame was really cool.”

“He was so mad.” Gai chuckled “i guess i had summoned him in the middle of dinner with his father. But he forgave me pretty quick when i told him who I was.”

“Summons like when their contracts are handed down in families.” Kakashi explained, “it’s an unbreakable bond. One that can continue on for generations.”

“Is that something Pakkun said to you?” Yamato asked, laughing when Kakashi glared over at him “and how old were you Kakashi Senpai? When you first summoned the nindogs?”

“I was 5 when I summoned Pakkun,” he ignored the moment Yamato’s jaw fell open. He had already heard a stupid amount of praise over his skills as a kid, he didn’t need to hear it when he was already so much more stronger and skilled than he had been back then. “My dad taught me to summon when i wouldn’t stop asking because I wanted to be able to call the ninkin when he was away on missions.”

“So you always had Pakkun with you when your dad was away?” Yamato smiled a soft, fond smile “That must have been a cute sight, a tiny Kakashi Senpai holding onto his favorite nindog as he waits for his dad to get home.”

“It really was,” He glared over at Gai “what? It was. My Papa and I would see you sitting by the gates waiting for your dad to get home once in a while. Pakkun was always sitting in your lap or cuddled up under your jacket when it was cold.”

“I’m going to tell Pakkun you called him cute next time I summon him,” Kakashi threatened “i’m sure he’ll love that.”

“I give him ear scratches and treats, I'm sure he’ll forgive me.” Gai laughed, silencing himself when the waiter finally came out with their food and placed it in front of them. “I appreciate the gift Yamato, it’ll look great on by the window, and Ningame will love it when he sees it.”

At that comment, Kakashi couldn’t help but lean over to see the gift himself. Yamato had never actually shown him what exactly he had picked out for Gai, and he hadn’t shown any interest in knowing until that exact moment.

He found he couldn’t disagree with Gai though. Ningame was going to love the statue that Yamato had picked out, a small thing with about four tortoises on it. The middle one really stood out though, surrounded by the three others with trees and grass making up the rest of the scene, a bright red shell made it stick out more than any of the smaller green or blue shells. It looked almost exactly like ningame, only missing the slight designs on ningames shell and the disgruntled look that was always on the summon’s face when he was called up by Gai. 

Yamato had picked out the perfect gift.

“What about you Kakashi Senpai?” He glanced back up from the bag, raising an eyebrow when he couldn’t quite figure out what Yamato was asking “what did you end up getting Gai for his birthday?”

Now both of their attention was on him, waiting for his response. 

“I…” his eyes darted towards the bag by his feet, and for the first time since buying the nunchucks he wondered if he had made the right choice. Gai hadn’t actually lemented not having his old pair, and he rarely ever used them in battle unless his enemy had a weapon of their own he needed a bit of extra defence against.

Would he even like them?  
Well, it was too late to take them back anyways. Reaching down with his free hand, he opened his backpack up and took the present out of its hiding place, holding it out to Gai without meeting his friends eyes. 

He was too embarrassed, too scared. If he had made the wrong choice Gai wasn’t going to tell him out right that he didn’t like them, but his face would say everything. He had always been open with his emotions, easy to read. If he hated the gift, Kakashi would know the minute he opened it.

Gai at least seemed to understand Kakashi’s embarrassment, opting to take the gift from his friend without a word and place it down on the table in front of him. For some reason, he continued to hold Kakashi’s hand, refusing to let go as he used his free hand to carefully lift the top of the box.

Ultimately, Kakashi’s curiosity got the better of him, forcing his eyes upwards so that he could see the expression on Gai’s face. He had to know, he couldn’t not know how exactly the gift made his friend feel.

Instead of being met with a look of dread and disappointment as he had expected, Kakashi found himself looking at eyes full of wonder and a smile that took up his entire face.

“Where…” Gai’s eyes met his “where did you get these?”

“I found them in Sunagakure,” Kakashi explained “you left your only pair of Nunchucks in Konoha when we left, so i thought you might want a new set.”

There was no verbal response to his answer, rather Kakashi quickly found that Gai had removed his hand from his own and turned to face him so that he could wrap both arms around his neck, pulling him into a crushing hug. If it wasn’t for the fact that his shoulders were screaming in pain, he would actually enjoy the hug. It left him in the perfect position to bury his nose into Gai’s neck and let that familiar calming scene take over. 

The pain really was too much though, and ultimately he had to give up his dreams of hiding his face away in Gai’s neck and forgetting about the rest of the world in favour of gently trying to pry himself away before his bones gave in and started to crack under the pressure.

“Gai…” he poked his friend in the side when he didn’t seem to understand what Kakashi’s movements meant “Gai, you’re going to crush me to death here…”

“Oh!” Finally Gai released his grip on Kakashi and moved back, a sheepish smile plastered on his face as he watched Kakashi reach up and rub his shoulders “sorry.”

“It’s ok just... try not to crush me to death.” Kakashi whispered softly. 

“I’ll try to remind myself not to,” Gai beamed “but I really do love the gift Kakashi. They’re beautiful.”

“Well, I'm glad that I made the right choice.” He tried to smile, he really did, but even with his mask on, he could tell that it was far from an acceptable show of emotions. It felt awkward and chunky at best, nothing compared to the smooth smile Yamato always had on his face, or the gleaming blast of pride that Gai displayed when he was happy.

It was something he was going to have to work on a bit more, but right now there was dinner in front of him and Gai was taking hold of his hand once again. All he could focus on was intertwining his fingers with Gai’s and that soft warm feeling in the pit of his belly. 


	13. Finally

Two hours had passed since the three of them had arrived at Gai’s chosen restaurant, and not once had Gai let go of his hand after their hug. Not to eat, not to pay for dinner. Nothing seemed to make him take back his hand even for a moment.

Kakashi loved it. It was warm and soft, and it was the most contact he had with Gai in months. He didn’t want it to end for a second, no matter how much Yamato was glaring at them.

“I guess it’s time to head out,” his hand twitched in Gai’s. Leaving meant risking having to let go of Gai’s hand. Having to shove both of his hands into his pockets to avoid reaching out on the way back home. He didn’t like that idea at all. “Though, it is a nice night out…”

There was a thought he could get on board with. One he had pushed out of his mind since his own birthday when Kaiya and Akari had interrupted their night out.

“How about a walk?” He was certain he had said that too fast, maybe with a little too much enthusiasm. If he had, Gai didn’t seem to notice. He just smiled back at him, that beautiful blinding smile that Kakashi wished he could see all the time. 

“A walk does sound nice,” Gai mused “How about it Yamato?”

“I think I'll leave that to you two,” Yamato waved them off, placing a hand on his knee and using the position to help shove himself to his feet “We were out late last night watching fireworks, and I didn't sleep well. I think I'll call it a night.”

With that said, Yamato waved his goodbyes towards the pair and headed for the door.

“So…” Kakashi lowered his eyes, unsure what to say.

“You wanted a walk,” Gai insisted, shoving himself to his feet and looking down at Kakashi, their hands still tangled together hovering between them “Let’s go for a walk."

Taking the hint, Kakashi crawled to his feet and allowed Gai to tug him towards the exit, ignoring all of the people staring at them as they made their escape. 

It still bothered him a little, seeing so many eyes watching him whenever he was in town. He couldn't understand why people felt the need to stare. 

His free hand reached up instinctively, ready to pull his mask back into place over the lower part of his face when Gai reached out and stopped it. 

"It's a night out," he smiled when Kakashi met his gaze "just ignore the looks. It doesn't matter anyways."

"That's easy for you to say," he whispered, following Gai's lead down the crowded street "people don't look at you and think you're a freak."

"Well, not since we left Konoha, no." It took a significant amount of effort not to slap a hand over his face. How could he forget that. Gai had faced more than enough judgement in his life, he knew what it felt like to be looked at and judged. 

"I just...i don't like it," he sighed, turning his gaze towards the road in front of them. "I don't understand why they need to stare. What's so wrong with my face that people are always looking at me when I have my mask off?"

"People just don't understand," Gai explained as he gave Kakashi's hand a gentle squeeze "there's always something people don't understand but it's not your job to explain it for them or hide yourself away. You are who you are and there's no reason to hide that."

"Why does it seem like you're the only person who thinks that way?" He asked, lowering his eyes when Gai glanced over at him "i just...the first time you saw me without the mask nothing changed. You didn't seem to think i was weird, you didn't call it 'underwhelming'. It was...just a face."

"It is just a face." Gai smiled fondly "and we both know how i am with faces. Most days without your mask i wouldn't recognize you."

Kakashi shook his head "that's not it," he argued "you never seemed to have a problem with my...my…" he couldn't quite find the words to explain it.

"Your lack of emotional display?" He nodded, unsure of what else to do as Gai led him down another street. Up ahead he could see that the shops were finally starting to come to an end, a giant water fountain sitting in the middle of the street indicating that there might be a quiet area for them to take a break. "Your emotions may not be clear as day on your face, but they're still there."

His heart stopped. No one had ever said that to him before. Most people preferred to act as if he had no emotions, no weaknesses or thoughts of his own.

He had always been a soldier. A good killer, and a kid who didn't seem phased by anything he had been forced to do. Obito's death, Rin's murder, Minato-Sensei and Kushina's deaths. He had always been expected to just accept those things as a part of life and move forward. To not act out, not cry, not hurt.

Minato Sensei and Gai had been the only ones to see him cry after Rin's death. The only one's he had felt safe enough around to break down. Everyone else in the village saw the same old Kakashi as they had before. Stoic, strong willed, never phased. It's how he had earned the nickname 'cold blooded Kakashi'. Because no one else had seen those moments when it all became too much. When he couldn't shove those feelings down any longer and be a good soldier. 

He couldn't let them. He never smiled, never laughed. If they saw him cry they would think he was weak. Unbalanced and broken. 

"Hey…" a hand came up to cup his cheek, pulling himself out of his thoughts and forcing him to look forward and into Gai's eyes. He barely registered the moment that Gai's thumb glided across his cheek, wiping away the tears that had started to fall. "It's ok Kakashi."

Why was it always Gai he dropped his guard around? Why was it only Gai that seemed to make his emotions bubble up and explode anymore? 

Why was it Gai he loved so much, when he knew that Gai deserved so much better. Someone kind and soft, who could keep him safe and happy. 

His eyes darted down to their hands, fingers still laced together in a hold that hadn't been broken for hours. 

He wanted Gai to feel the same way. Hoped that maybe Gai wanted to be more than just friends and eternal rivals, much more. 

"Come on," he followed Gai's pull easily, watching as he led him closer to the fountain "we can relax by the fountain. It's always quiet there at this hour."

It didn't take them long to arrive at the fountain, a large beautiful display in the center of the villages shopping area. He had seen it before in passing, but never this close. He hadn't been able to take in the design or the size. It was beautiful. 

"You know," he turned his attention back to Gai, a warm feeling building up in the pit of his stomach when he saw his friend looking up at the statue in the middle of the fountain with soft eyes "Kaiya told me that the two people displayed here were lovers. That they had come to the land where Tonika now stands and decided that this was where they wanted to build their lives."

That was odd. Most of the time when there was a story of love and growth between two people it was a man and a woman, but this time Kakashi found himself looking up at a statue of two women. Both of their hands were between the pair, interlocked in a tender grasp as they stared into each other's eyes for the rest of time. This moment etched into stone, never to be forgotten. 

"Do you think…" he stopped himself, unsure whether or not to continue with what he was going to say. 

"I think we were meant to come here, yes." He wasn't sure how Gai always seemed to know what was on his mind, but it was comforting. Knowing he didn't always have to explain himself, or even speak out loud, to be heard.

His fingers tightened around Gai's, holding him just a little closer as he continued to look up at the statue. 

"She didn't smile either, according to legends." Gai raised his free hand, pointing towards the women closest to Kakashi. He face was blank in its representation, lacking the same loving smile that sat on the other woman's face "it's said that the first time she smiled, it was for the one her heart belonged to."

He liked that story. It was nice, and for once he could see himself in someone else. Someone who didn't display their emotions visibly. 

Beside him, Gai had started to let go of his hand and moving forward, stepping up onto the ledge of the fountain and turning to face him "i thought it was a cute story."

"You're going to fall into the fountain," Kakashi warned, watching with fondness as Gai waved off his comment "but it is cute. Why are you telling me it?"

"Because, when Kaiya told me the legend I couldn't help but think of you," Gai glanced over his shoulder towards the statue "how you've never smiled, but your emotions are still there. Tucked away behind your eyes. I thought maybe one day i'd be lucky enough to see the moment when those emotions finally flood out, not with tears or anger, but with happiness. A smile that could light up the sky. That's how the legends describe that moment"

"And what makes you think I'll ever have that moment?" Kakashi inquired "you said she smiled for her love, the person who had her heart. Who knows if I even have someone like that." 

"Everyone has someone they love," Gai argued "either romantic or Platonic, love is a part of life. It's reserved for those important to you. Besides," he squatted down in front of Kakashi, putting himself back at eye level with his friend "you said yourself that you were capable of love, you just need an emotional connection."

Well, it was nice to know that Gai listened to him. 

"And if you're not there?" He asked "what do you do then?"

"Well, if I somehow miss the moment my eternal rival smile at the love of his life, then I'm just being a bad friend." Gai chuckled "I'll just have to do my best to make sure that doesn't happen."

Giving his head a shake, Kakashi reached and poked Gai in the shoulder. It had been a small poke, something that would usually have no effect on Gai other that to tell him that he was being ridiculous.

This time, however, Kakashi found himself watching as Gai's balance faltered, and suddenly he was tipping backwards into the fountain.

Water splashed everywhere when he hit, sending droplets flying into Kakashi's face as he watched the scene in front of him.

When Gai finally resurfaced, his entire body was drenched. His hair was stuck to his forehead and neck, his clothes were dripping wet, and the look of utter shock on his face was just a little too much. 

Kakashi stared at his friend for a moment, taking in the absolute soaking wet disaster that Gai had become. He couldn't help it when the laughter started, his hands surging up to cover his mouth as he curled into himself.

It wasn't long before a wet hand grabbed one of his wrists, pulling his hand back as he looked up to meet Gai's eyes, a smile plastered on his face and laughter still taking over. 

"It really does light up the sky." Gai smiled at him fondly, his thumb rubbing the inside of Kakashi's wrist as he watched his friend struggle to get himself back under control. 

"You...you're soaked." Kakashi snorted, wanting desperately to cover his face again. Problem was, Gai was now holding onto both of his wrists to prevent such an occurrence from happening. "Gai…"

"Who cares?" Gai beamed "i got to see you laugh. How many people can say they saw Kakashi Hatake laughing?"

He was certain he was being an idiot, surging forward and smashing his lips against Gai's in a hard desperate kiss. For once though, he didn't care. He loved the taste of that kiss, and the way Gai released his grip on his right wrist so he could move his hand up into his hair. It was intoxicating. He never wanted it to end. 

It had to end though, his lungs demanded air and after a moment he found himself pulling away from the kiss to provide it. His breath was short and ragged, taken away from the force of the kiss, and Gai's eyes were on him. Examining his face, searching for something. 

He must have found what he was looking for, because his hand was moving out of Kakashi's hair and down to his chin, tilting his head up just a bit as he leaned in for another kiss. This one was gentler, more of a soft brush of lips, but no less amazing than the last.

When Gai pulled away, his eyes were still locked on Kakashi. Soft and bright as always, but with a hint of something else. A look Kakashi hadn't seen on his face before. 

"I love you." the words slipped from his mouth with ease, and he knew immediately they were the right thing to say. The soft smile on Gai's face told him so, as well as the thumb now tracing its way across his skin. 

Why was this so easy? Why wasn't it as hard as he had thought it would be? He wasn't stuttering, or tripping over his words. He didn't feel wrong admitting his feelings and putting his heart on the line, nothing at all about the entire scenario felt like a giant mistake waiting to blow up in his face.

"I adore you." his eyes widened. He had expected Gai to return his words, to make his heart hurt with worry and fear. He always feared those words, ever since Rin had said them to him after his chidori had already ripped through her chest. 

He liked Gai's version more. It was comforting. Different words, but with a very similar meaning. 

"We should…" he wanted to say 'head home', somewhere they could have a little more privacy, but for once that didn't feel right. Yamato would be there, right next to their bedroom and able to hear anything and everything Kakashi might want to do.

And at this exact moment, he wanted to do a lot. Things he had read about in the icha icha paradise book he had snatched from an older ninja back in Konoha. 

"There's an inn," Gai offered, his fingers tracing circles into Kakashi's cheek "we could…"

He didn't wait for Gai to finish, reaching down between them and taking his friend's hand. An Inn was the perfect idea, and he had no desire to wait around and give himself a chance to get lost in his thoughts.

For once he just wanted to dive right into trouble. To take everything he had been dreaming of for the last year, without any worries for what might happen in the morning.

He'd deal with that when they woke up. 

* * *

Sunlight shone on Kakashi's face, pulling him out of dreams slowly. He wasn't ready to wake up quiet yet though, to let his dreams slide away into darkness.

Five more minutes. That's all he wanted. Five more minutes to believe he was holding everything he had wanted for the past year. To let himself believe that there was just a moment of bliss reserved for him.

"Kakashi…" he grunted in response, burning his face into the warm chest that he was currently using as a pillow "Kakashi, if we stay here too long Yamato is going to worry."

How dare Gai wake him up with facts.

"Five minutes." he responded with a sleepy voice, wrapping his arms around Gai's waist and holding himself just a little closer. 

That didn't seem to be an option though, because the next thing he knew Gai was turning him onto his back and sitting on top of his waist. A playful smile was plastered on his face when Kakashi finally managed to crack his good eye open and look up at him.

This could only mean trouble. 

"You know," Gai leaned over him, his face directly over Kakashi's as he brought a hand up to bury his fingers into the soft strands of silver hair "the sooner we get back to the house and do some morning training…" he leaned over at that moment, his lips brushing against Kakashi's left ear as he whispered the rest of the sentence into his ear.

"Oh?" Kakashi locked his arms around Gai's neck "is that a promise?"

"Always." Gai smiled, laughing when Kakashi leaned up to steal a quick kiss. 

"In that case," he pulled back from the kiss, brushing his nose against Gai's playfully "we should get out of bed and head home. Wouldn't want to make Yamato worry."

"That would be mean of us." Gai smiled, stealing one more kiss before moving off of Kakashi's waist and crawling out of bed.


	14. Time Skip

It was odd, heading back towards Konoha after so long. It had been eight years since Kakashi and Gai had left their old home, an amazing eight years. Years of not having to worry about Kakashi's health as much, of not having himself or Kakashi on an endless stream of missions for weeks or sometimes even months.

Eight years of bliss, in Gai's personal opinion. It had only been made better by the new Relationship Kakashi and him had started on his eighteenth birthday. 

But now, eight years later, he made his way back towards Konoha with Yamato by his side. He had no intention of staying there for long, and if the request he had been given was quick he would gladly take the chance to leave sooner rather than later.

It was better to stay away from the village, at least for now. Even if he did miss his old friends, the choice to leave had ended up being the right one. 

Kakashi had healed a lot since those days, opened up a little more. Of course he was still closed off, that was just his personality. But the nightmares of Rin's death didn't plaque him as much anymore, and he had backed away from the cliffs edge, no longer springing into any battle that could lead him to an early grave.

"Oy," he turned his attention towards Yamato, smiling when he noticed the younger man looking at him "you're always getting annoyed with Kakashi senpai for getting lost in his thoughts."

"There's a difference there," Gai smiled "i'm not getting lost in dark thoughts." 

"No, but you are getting dazed," Yamato threw back "at this rate you'll run into a tree."

"Why did I bring you along again?" He frowned, even though he knew exactly why he had brought Yamato with him. When Kakashi had found out he'd be heading near Konoha he had demanded he take one of them, regardless of how easy the mission would be. It was as if every alarm in his mind had gone off, telling him that something could go wrong. that Gai was in danger.

Yamato had not been happy with the decision, preferring his solo missions ever since Kakashi had started giving them to him when he turned 18, or the occasional mission with Kakashi. Neither of them was going to argue though.

If it made Kakashi feel better, they'd just suck it up and do as he requested.

"We should be at Konoha within an hour," he had meant to say that only to himself, but for some reason it had left his mouth, becoming audible to Yamato as well. "Anything you want to do while we're in town?"

"I was honestly just thinking of grabbing something to eat," Yamato shrugged his shoulders "i love the food in Tonika, but i have missed some of my favorite places from Konoha."

That sounded like a good idea. Gai hadn't been able to go to his favorite Dango shop since they left.

Well, he was allowed to go. There was no law saying they couldn't visit Konoha and he knew that Kakashi made the occasional trip back home. But his visits were dedicated to paying a visit to old graves. It was an occasion Kakashi usually preferred to be alone, choosing to come home after and cuddle up in Gai's arms. 

But still, as a rule they preferred to stay away. They had left for a reason, and until there was someone better in the hokage's seat he continue to stay away. It was better than risking running into the third hokage.

"Uh, Gai," he turned his attention back to Yamato, frowning when he noticed the man stopping when he landed on the next tree branch. Following his line of sight, he narrowed his eyes when he saw a small group of kids, genin if he was correct, huddled against a tree with their weapon's out in front of them.

This wasn't good.

It only got worse when he saw what he could assume was their sensei Flying backwards, his back colliding with another tree.

"Genma-Sensei!" His eyes widened. That was his team mate, his friend. 

He didn't have time to think, his feet were already moving on their own, shifting so that he was facing the small group and bolting away from his spot towards the fight.

He made it just in time, his fist slamming into the attackers face and sending them flying through the air. It wasn't the only attack though, he noticed immediately that there were three others.

Of course there was. Genma was a talented Ninja, he wasn't going to be taken down by one enemy unless they were exceptionally powerful. 

"Look who decided to show up," he glanced back, smiling when he saw his friend wiping away some blood from his mouth "about damn time."

"You looked like you were having a little trouble," Gai shrugged "I thought I'd give you a hand."

"Well, it's appreciated," Genma smirked, shoving himself back to his feet and looking over at the three genin still huddled together near another tree "Neji, Lee, Tenten, get out of here! Get back to Konoha!"

"But Genma sensei!" Gai turned his attention to the group, watching as a kid with a long braid in his hair and determination in his eyes stepped forward "we can help!"

"Now is not the time to play hero kid." He said softly, smiling to himself as he remembered saying those exact words to his own Papa when he had rescued his team from two of the seven ninja swordsmen. "It's better to leave cowards who would attack genin to us."

"Cowards!?" His eyes scanned over to the Shinobi that he had already punched "you are dead!"

Gai's hand snapped up, grabbing his attackers fist when it attempted to strike him in the chin. The wrist twisted easily, a crunch the first audible clue that he had definitely broken a bone. 

As soon as he let go of the other Shinobi's hand, they staggered backwards and pulled the broken wrist close to their body. 

"Yamato…" he turned his attention to the other attackers as he spoke, a smile pulling at his lips when a wooden pillar blasted out of the ground and sent another one flying into the air. "I was going to say get the kids out of here…"

"I swear if you get over protective on me," he chuckled when Yamato appeared by his side, anger in his eyes "Kakashi Senpai can get away with that shit, but you can shove it!"

"I just figured with your wood style you'd be best equipped to protect them," he smirked when Yamato narrowed his eyes at him "but if you're so determined for a fight…"

"I hate you." Yamato grumbled, disappearing from his side in a flash of smoke and appearing beside Genma's team. 

"You think we can take care of this quickly?" Genma asked as he appeared by Gai's side in Yamato's place "I was really looking forward to relaxing."

"You haven't changed at all," Gai sighed "always wanting to relax…"

"Ya well, not all of us can train 24/7." Genma shrugged "but seriously…"

"With both of us...five minutes tops" Gai smiled at his old friend "I promise."

"Good." With that said, Genma got into fighting position. 

* * *

Babysitting duty was not Yamato's favorite mission. How anyone managed to teach genin was beyond him, and how they managed not to murder them was just astounding in his opinion.

Especially with a genin as loud and excitable as the kid currently bouncing around trying to train while they waited outside the gates of Konoha. 

"Lee," one of the other kids spoke up, Hyuga, judging by the white eyes. "Must you do that while we wait for Genma Sensei?"

"I must continue training!" Yamato groaned. That sounded far too much like Gai at 5 in the morning for his liking. "My Taijutsu must be top tier if i am to prove I am worthy of being a shinobi."

"That doesn't mean you need to do it here," the Kunoichi of the group spoke up, tenten if he remembered the names their Sensei had said properly. "We'll have more than enough time to train when Genma Sensei and his friend get back."

This was horrible. He hated everything and Kakashi Senpai owed him at least three solo missions for all of this bullshit.

"You look happy." Yamato threw his fist out when a face popped up in front of him, growling when he found his fist being blocked with ease "on edge much?"

"You put me on babysitting duty!" He snapped, glaring at Gai as he hung upside down in front of him, his feet attached to a tree branch that hung over the spot Yamato was standing "at least tell me the fight was boring so i didn't miss anything."

"Well," Gai gave his shoulders a shrug, laughing when Yamato responded by punching him in the shoulder. "It wasn't as exciting as you would have liked it to be, i will say that."

"You don't consider anything exciting unless you have to open more than the third gate." Genma huffed, making his way past the pair with an unimpressed look. 

That was interesting. There was a story here and Yamato had to hear it.

"So," he stepped past Gai, ignoring him when he called after him "how exactly do you know a cutie from Konoha. Kakashi Senpai never mentioned him."

"And what exactly did Kakashi do to earn that title?" Genma smirked back at him "last i knew he was too busy being a stick in the mud to be anyones 'Senpai'"

"I asked my question first." Yamato grunted when a hand came down on his shoulder, glaring up at Gai who was now standing beside him.

"Genma and I were on the same team when we graduated the Academy," Gai smiled proudly, "we've been in many battles together before."

"Ya, before you and Kakashi up and left without a word," he could feel Gai slinking back, as if he had been hit physically by the words his friend threw at him "do you even care how worried we were?"

"You are hardly the type to worry," Gai muttered beside him "beside's, you know i can take care of myself."

"Ya, i also know you're a reckless idiot following a suicidal dumbass." Genma huffed.

"That's not...it's not like that!" Gai protested "I mean...i guess it was, but it's different now."

"I'm not too inclined to believe that." Genma frowned "and the new kid? When did you pick that one up?"

"Yamato joined us shortly after we left." Gai explained "Kakashi's a little...protective of him."

"A little?" Yamato huffed "he wouldn't let me go on solo missions until i was 15."

"Ok...very protective." Gai smiled fondly "but for good reason. Anyways, Yamato's been with us most of the time." 

"Poor Bastard." Yamato suddenly felt a great urge to hug the other man. Very few people seemed to understand how tough it could be, being around Kakashi and Gai all the time. "I'm guessing you tortured him with your little crush."

"Well," Yamato smiled fondly at the thought. "It's not exactly a crush anymore, though I'm still convinced he needs to buy Kakashi Senpai a muzzle for when they're…" 

A hand came down over his mouth, cutting off the rest of his sentence.

"There are children present." He didn't need to look back to know that Gai's face had gone bright red. It always did when he suggested a muzzle, or really any way to muffle his Senpai's screams when he was being fucked senseless. 

"Well, at least you finally asked him out." Genma huffed "anyways, we should head back into the village. We have to give Lord Third our mission report…"

"Genma Sensei!" All three of them turned their attention towards Genma's students, focusing on the small bundle of energy who now had a look of pure determination in his eyes "you mentioned the gates. Does that...we're you talking about…"

"Idiot," Hyuga huffed behind his comrade "there's only one technique that uses eight gates, so of course he's talking about it." 

The determination only seemed to grow in the kids eyes, regardless of his comrades insult. 

His eyes turned to Gai, bright and full of passion. Yamato would swear the kid was Gai's own son, but Gai didn't seem the type to leave behind his own child. 

"That means you are a taijutsu master!" He beamed "Lord Third said there were no Taijutsu masters in Konoha."

"Because he left," Tenten reminded her comrade with a roll of her eyes "like Genma Sensei said."

"He's desperate for Jonin Teachers i see," Gai sighed "it is the only reason i can see you agreeing to take on such a job, Genma."

"'Agreeing' is a very loose term in this scenario." Genma huffed "more like 'not given much of a choice'"

"But you're a great Sensei anyways," Tenten beamed up at the older man "we could have ended up with a lot worse."

"Yes, that makes me feel so much better…" Genma narrowed his eyes towards his old teammate "I hope you know this is your fault."

"It's good practice for you," Gai smiled fondly "but...if your student needs a taijutsu master…"

"And how do you plan to do that?" Yamato interrupted "Kakashi Senpai already hates getting up at 5am with you. Do you really think he'll get up earlier so you can meet some kid for training in Konoha?"

"His preference to sleep in could prove to be a hindrance," Gai agreed, going silent as he attempted to think of a solution. 

"I would gladly meet you wherever I need to," Lee proclaimed with excitement "Genma Sensei tries, but Taijutsu is not his strong suit and he is unable to train me in ninjutsu or genjutsu as i have no ability in either…"

A soft smile pulled at Gai's lips "or we could make plans with your entire team," he offered, turning his gaze towards his old friend. "How early do you usually train?"

"7am or 9am, depending how early i feel like getting up." Genma shrugged his shoulders "what are you thinking?"

"Well, our home is near Tonika which is a 5 hour spring away," Gai mused "but if we were to meet half way it would only be 2 and a half hours for each of us. Kakashi would be less inclined to argue with such a short distance of travel." 

"It could work." Genma agreed "like what, twice a week? Three time's if we don't have a lot of missions?"

"That would be a good amount of training." Gai nodded "and i am sure Yamato would not mind seeing you again." 

Yamato's face went bright red, his eyes narrowing towards Gai as the other man smiled back at him.

Why was he surrounded by such embarrassing people?

"Two and a half hours isn't bad." Genma agreed, looking back at his students "what do you think; Neji, Tenten?"

"I doubt our training regime will change much." Neji stated dismissively.

"But it could be interesting." Tenten beamed "being trained by a Ninja who left Konoha. How many other Genin can say they got that chance?"

"It'll be amazing!" Yamato had to take a step back when Lee threw his arms up into the air, his eyes practically burning with passion. 

"How do you think Kakashi Senpai will take the news?" He asked, smiling playfully when Gai turned to look at him "when you tell him you had a son he doesn't know about?"

The slap to the back of his head was more than worth it when Gai's cute friend started to laugh.


	15. Meet and Greet

Excitement coursed through Lee's veins. It had been days since he met Genma Sensei's friend, since he had been promised a teacher who could help him improve his taijutsu. He had almost thought he would get the opportunity to meet with the man again, their team had received so many D ranked missions since their return that he thought they would never have a day off. 

But then just yesterday he was standing there, arms behind his back waiting to be told about their next mission when a small Pug dog had jumped through the Hokage's window, landing on the older man's desk and allowing him to take a message off of it's neck.

It was Neji who recognized the dog as a summons. A partner to a shinobi who could be called up at will to help their summoner in any way needed as long as it fit into their abilities. Lee had been awe struck, he had never seen a summon before. Especially not one so small and cute, with it's long green scarf and unimpressed look.

Whatever message it had brought with it had been important, because the hokage had dismissed them immediately, telling them that they would have the next few days off. 

At that moment, the summon turned its attention towards Genma Sensei, staring at him expectantly for a few minutes before their Sensei finally gave in and borrowed a scroll from Lord Third. Lee wasn't sure what exactly he had written down, but as soon as he had put it around the dog's neck and sent it off, he turned to them and told them to be ready to leave early in the morning.

It wasn't until the three of them had arrived at their usual meeting location that Genma Sensei told them they would be meeting his friend not far outside of the village.

"It must be his summon…" Lee mused, smiling when his teammates looked over at him "Genma Sensei's friend. It must be his summon who brought lord third the note. He must have been requesting time off for us."

"Why would Lord Third listen to the requests of a ninja that deserted their village?" Neji gave an unimpressed huff "he hardly owes them any favors."

"Maybe they still do some work for him?" Tenten suggested "or maybe he just respects them for some reason." 

"I find that doubtful." Neji dismissed "Lord Third has an entire village of Shinobi to do the work he requires done, including the Anbu special ops. He doesn't need the help.of deserters." 

"Harsh words from a 12 year old." All three of them came to a stop, their eyes searching the area around them for the source of the voice. "I'm sure you know everything about the world." 

Lee was certain that Neji was going to argue with the mysterious voice, ready to defend himself when they all felt a sudden presence appearing behind them.

All of them turned at once, darting backwards in different directions and getting into a fighting stance when they noticed the new person standing there.

With some distance between them, Lee took the opportunity to examine the new person. Their hair was spiky, standing up in the air in every direction and a vibrant silver. A rare hair colour in his experience, especially for someone who looked no older than Genma Sensei. 

"You're Anbu," Neji spoke up first, dragging his teammates attention back to him "what is an Anbu soldier doing following us? Don't you have a mission to take care of?" 

"I guess you really don't know everything," the man commented, a mask covering his mouth as he spoke. "You must be the team Gai is waiting to meet. Where is Genma?"

None of them spoke up. How were they supposed to answer such a question when they didn't even know who they were speaking to. The only thing giving them any clue to the man's identity was the Anbu tattoo on his shoulder that Neji had noticed. 

"I see you still love to make a scene." Their eyes shot up, following Genma Sensei as he fell out of a higher branch and landed in front of them "are you scouting ahead? Making sure no one unexpected is coming?"

"More like making sure you dragged your ass out of bed," the other man commented, his expression blank as he examined Genma. "I wouldn't want to have to tell Gai you weren't showing up after all of that work I put in to get you a few days off."

Lee's arts darted around the area, searching for the other shinobi they spoke of. Gai, the man who was going to train him in Taijutsu. 

"And what exactly did you do?" Genma Sensei crossed his arms over his chest "i'm certain lord third was about to give us another mission when your Nindog showed up...what was his name again?" 

"Pakkun would be insulted to know you forgot his name," The comment was made without any emotion. No fondness, no enjoyment. It was as if they were witnessing a meeting happening in front of them, rather than two friends seeing each other again "anyways, i told the old man it might do some good to give your team some time off. That i might find it in me to...return the favor if he needed it. Not something Gai was too happy with me sending off, but it meant he might get to train that team of genin he was looking forward too so…" 

"So you bite the bullet for him," Genma Smirked "you always were willing to do anything for Gai."

The other Shinobi didn't respond. Instead, he turned his back to them and waved a hand as if he was beckoning them forward. "five minutes north. We shouldn't be too hard to find." 

That was the last thing he said before he disappeared, leaving the rest of them standing there in silence.

"Genma Sensei…" Lee looked over at their team leader, a little confused when he saw a fond smile on his face.

"You'll get used to him." He promised "He's...odd, but he's a good person." 

"I take it that's the man you and your friend we talking about?" Neji spoke up "i believe you called him...Kakashi?" 

"That would be him," Genma Sensei confirmed "let's keep going. I wouldn't want Gai to get antsy waiting for us."

Lee was the first one to head off, his excitement renewed. He was going to learn Taijutsu from a master, and he couldn't wait to get started.

* * *

This was bad. Very bad.

Gai had been attempting to brush his hair before Genma and his team arrived, since he had failed to take care of the mess of black rats nests before leaving the house that morning. He had hoped it wouldn't take long, but instead he found himself struggling to wrangle the hair brush free from the knot he had somehow managed to get it tangled up in. 

"You seem to be having troubles," gai glared up at his boyfriend, his hand still struggling to pull the hair Brush free from a knot it had gotten tangled up in "need a hand?"

"Please," he released his grip on the brush, watching as Kakashi moved behind him and took hold of it in his place "are they on their way?"

"They should be here in a few minutes," Kakashi confirmed. His fingers worked themselves into the knotted hair, carefully pulling the strands free until he could finally wrangle the brush away from its hairy prison. "How is it that you always manage to get your hair so tangled?"

"A talent of mine." Gai beamed, wincing when Kakashi started to brush his hair, tugging on the knotted strands of hair. 

A comfortable silence fell between them as Kakashi worked the brush through his hair, gently unknotting the long black strands while Gai sat there patiently. 

He always loved these moments. When Kakashi was focused on fixing his hair, making it perfectly smooth and knot free. It was one of those time's that calm personality really came in handy, and Kakashi always seemed to love having an excuse to run his fingers through his boyfriends hair. Checking for any remaining knots, braiding his hair, or just having a reason to have his fingers buried in those long black stands. 

"You're practically buzzing with excitement," Kakashi noted, his fingers carefully picking apart another knot so that the brush could pass through it easier "what has you so excited about this?"

"I think...it's just a nice opportunity." Gai whispered "When I was a genin i always looked up to Choza Sensei and Minato Senpai. I thought they were so cool, strong shinobi who choose to become teachers. To pass on their knowledge to the next generation." 

"So you want to do the same?" Finally, the brush passed through the knot without issue, breaking it apart completely and smoothing out Gai's hair "pass on your knowledge to another generation. To Genma's team."

"Well, ya." Gai tilted his head back, smiling up at Kakashi brightly. "And this team...well you've seen them now. What did you think?"

"Only one of them spoke to me," Kakashi shrugged his shoulders "the Hyuga, and he's kind of…" he paused, trying to think of the right word to say "honestly, he's a little arrogant. Kind of like me when I was his age."

"Which means he can be like you when he's older too." Gai beamed "strong, brave, protective. Or maybe he'll be different. that depends on him, but having the chance to teach and mold these kids into who they'll be in the future ...it's exciting."

"And the one you told me about?" Kakashi pressed on as he continued to brush Gai's hair "what about that kid got you so into the idea of training him and his team?" 

"He's just...he wants so bad to be a shinobi. He's passionate and determined…" Kakashi hummed behind him, his fingers working their way through his hair as he started to braid it. "And he wants to learn Taijutsu. You know how rare it is for someone to be excited to learn Taijutsu." 

"You were the only one who liked our taijutsu classes at the academy." Kakashi mused "though i didn't get to see them all through with you…"

"That's because you were too busy being amazing. Leaving the rest of us in the dust." His hands stilled "you know it's true."

"Maybe...when we were kids." Kakashi thought back to those days. The arrogant little kid he was, and the desire he had to leave the academy as soon as possible when he had started classes there. It had always been so boring, so easy. 

A part of him wished he had waited it out with the others now. Had the chance to see all of those classes through, grow his friendships at the academy before becoming a genin with everyone else. 

Finishing up with the braid, Kakashi reached around Gai and picked up the elastic that his boyfriend had left on his lap. It only took a second to secure the braid, letting it fall back over Gai's shoulder as he pulled his mask down and leaned in close to press a tender kiss the back of Gai's neck. 

"Are you going to be nice to Yamato today?" Gai asked, looking back at his boyfriend as he put the mask back in place over his face "he has been looking forward to this visit almost as much as me."

He grunted. Yamato was his own person, an adult capable of making his own life choices, but Kakashi hadn't been happy about him gushing about the 'cute brunette with the toothpick' or the way he had practically begged Gai to tell him stories about Genma. 

"I think he needs better taste…" Kakashi stated, his eyes darting forward when Genma and his team finally landed in the clearing in front of them "i mean really...Genma?"

"Says the dude dating Gai?" Genma shot back with a smirk "i'd ask how that happened, but you've been drooling over him since we were kids." 

Kakashi avoided his boyfriends gaze when he looked back at him. That was not a conversation he was about to have in front of kids he didn't even know. 

"So, what's the plan here?" Genma turned his attention over to his old teammate, watching as he shoved himself to his feet "you wanted the whole team...you must have an idea about how to train them."

"Team training is better, that's what Choza Sensei always said." Gai smiled "and with a Taijutsu focused Shinobi and a Hyuga who's natural abilities lean towards Taijutsu focused fighting, they can only improve each others abilities if they train together."

"And where does that leave me?" Tenten huffed, glaring at the man in front of her.

"Well, i haven't seen where your talents are focused yet." Gai smiled "I was hoping a spare might clear up that issue." 

"A...a spar?" She blinked "with who?"

"All three of you against me," He stated proudly, "I want to see how you work individually and as a team, and there's no better way to see that than in battle." 

Tenten looked over at her teammates. "Could be...interesting."

"He's Jonin level at least." Neji mused "we're unlikely to win."

"It's not about winning!" Lee proclaimed "we'll show him our passion and strength as a team! Then we'll have two Jonin level teachers. What other team can say they have such an advantage?"

Neji seemed to think about it for a second, sighing when tenten slide up to his side and nudged him in the shoulder. "Fine," he sighed in defeat "At least we won't have come all the way out here for nothing." 

Kakashi watched as the three Genin got themselves pumped up, at least...as pumped up as they could get with someone as board with the idea as Neji. 

"I take it you want me out of the way?" He asked, looking over at his boyfriend for his answer. 

"You're never in the way." Gai smiled back at him "but I'm sure this won't be a short fight. You may prefer to spend your time getting in your daily nap." 

"That is not a bad idea." Kakashi agreed, reaching out to brush his hand against Gai's before he disappeared. 

"And me?" Genma crossed his arms over his chest "do i just watch?"

"Well…" Gai could see that his friend was about ready to crawl out of his skin when he heard the voice behind him, jumping away from his team as his hand reached to his side for a weapon. It was only when he was able to focus in on the brunette that had been accompanying Gai the last time he saw his old teammate that he was able to calm himself down. "You could do that, or you could have breakfast." 

Yamato held up a case in front of him. One Gai knew very well Kakashi had made for him at his insistence and near pestering. 

"Breakfast…" Genma examined the younger man, a smile pulling at his lips. "That doesn't sound like a bad idea. You're not going to try to poison me, are you?"

"Well, Kakashi Senpai did try to put in some mushrooms," Gai chuckled when Genma made a disgusted face "but Gai made sure he didn't go through with it." 

"I appreciate you keeping your boyfriend reigned in." Genma spoke to Gai even though his eyes were still focused on Yamato "breakfast sounds good. Where?" 

"There's a river nearby." Yamato smiled, watching as Genma contemplated the idea "Kakashi Senpai is unlikely to be around that area. He'll prefer to stick around here, meaning you don't have to deal with him and his…"

"It's a date." Genma nodded, disappearing into the tree's without another word.

Yamato glanced over at Gai, a look of confusion on his face.

"That means you should follow him." He smiled "he'll be waiting for you by the river." 

With that said, Yamato disappeared into the trees, leaving Gai alone in the clearing with Genma's team.

"Well, now that everyone else has left," Gai pushed himself to his feet, stretching his arms over his head to get himself a little more limber. "Let's see what you three have."


	16. Chapter 16

Gai was impressed. Genma's team still had a lot of room for improvement of course, but his friend had already trained them so well. Neji was distant and judgemental, but his fighting style was strong and he wasn't afraid to dive right into a fight. Tenten's Taijutsu wasn't as strong as her teammates, but her summoning abilities were impressive. With a little more work she could easily be one of Konoha's best Summoners with a specialty in weapons. 

And Lee, well that was a tiny bundle of pride and passion that could put even Gai to shame. His technique was choppy and rough, but he was determined. He refused to be left behind by his teammates and had already learned how to move around them easily in hopes of adding a little more damage behind their attacks.

He could work with this.

"I think that's enough for one day," he declared, looking up towards the tree's. They had been training for hours, there was no way Kakashi hadn't finished his nap and returned to the area. "I think you could all use some lunch."

"Only three hours?" He glanced back towards the tree line, smiling when he saw Kakashi squatting down on a lower branch in one of the tree's "you're going easy on them."

"It's their first training day with me." Gai shrugged "their not used to the intensity of our training sessions."

"Is that the excuse you're using now?" Kakashi asked with an amused look in his eye "fine, if you want a lazy day i'm not going to complain." 

Kakashi disappeared from the tree branch, appearing instantly by Gai's side and holding out the four boxes of lunch Gai had requested he make when he was already working on Yamato's breakfast date. 

"You can't complain because you spent at least 2 of those three hours sleeping and the last hour watching us." Gai smirked, taking the boxes from his boyfriend and setting them down on the ground in front of him so that he could separate the boxes. "You three don't have to worry. Kakashi rarely ever poisons the food he makes." 

"Don't give away my secrets," Kakashi protested "a healthy amount of fear is always good for a shinobi." 

"This is a training session with new Genin," Gai glared up at his boyfriend "not entry week for a new Anbu."

"That wasn't even that scary," he mused "i think they went easy on me."

"I wonder why," Gai rolled his eyes, placing the other three boxes out in front of him. "Come on. You can't starve yourself after an intense training session. Food will help you recharge."

The three of them examined the food for a second, looking at each other as if to ask if it really was safe. 

It was Tenten who finally gave in first and stepped forward, sitting down in front of one of the boxes and picking it up. 

"I'm not going to starve because you two are scared of the big bad Shinobi." she huffed, throwing a glare back at Neji who's eyes had settled on Kakashi.

Gai threw a hand over his mouth, covering his laughter at the jab. 'Big bad Shinobi' was hardly how he'd describe the man who had refused to get out of bed that morning, stating that the required amount of cuddles had not yet been attained. 

The other two continued to stay back, watching Tenten carefully as she opened up the box and started to eat.

When she didn't fall over dead from some hidden poison, they finally gave in and made their way to her side, each picking up their own box. 

"So...you're not scary but I am?" Gai glanced over at his boyfriend, smiling when he saw Kakashi looking up at him with sad eyes "How am I the scary one here?"

"It might have something to do with the mask," Gai commented, knowing full well it would do nothing to convince his boyfriend to remove the fabric that covered his face. "People are usually intimidated by a face they can't see."

"I really doubt it's the mask." Kakashi sighed. 

"Actually," they both turned their attention to Lee, watching as he started to wilt away as soon as their eyes were on him "i just...it's more…"

"Just spit it out Lee." Tenten insisted. 

"Well, it's more the way you present yourself." Lee admitted, his voice more of a whisper, "the first time we met Gai Senpai…"

Kakashi reached over and slapped a hand over his boyfriend's mouth, stopping whatever string of excited words were about to leave his throat. 

"He swooped in to save us from an enemy attack." Neji finished for his comrade "the first time we met you, you swooped in looking angry that we even existed, which is understandable since we likely interrupted your plans, but it's still not a great first impression." 

Behind his hand Kakashi could feel Gai starting to laugh. He always seemed to find it amusing when others were afraid of Kakashi. 

"I assure you, I was hardly upset by the interruption. I have been waiting for the interruption since the day Gai came home gushing about Genma's...how did you describe them?" He looked over at Gai "Cute little Genin?" 

Gai could feel his face heating up when Lee, Neji and Tenten all looked at him, unimpressed with the description he had used. 

Reaching up, he wrapped a hand around Kakashi's wrist and pulled it away from his mouth slowly. "You're exaggerating." He accused his boyfriend "I called them talented young shinobi."

"Don't lie to your new students, Gai," Kakashi looked at him, amusement hidden deep behind his eyes where few others could see it. "We all know any good Sensei calls their students cute at least once."

"That's very true." They both looked up, glaring at Genma as he stood behind them "Choza Sensei called us cute on multiple occasions."

For a second, Gai was sure Kakashi was about to respond. To shoot back with a "my sensei never…" or something else. The thought seemed to Die in Kakashi's throat, however. 

His nose crinkled as soon as he got a good whiff of Genma, and in a flash he was huddled away in Gai's arms with his nose buried up against his neck 

"W...what…" He looked down at his boyfriend, shock etched across his face as he tried to process what exactly had happened. "Kakashi…."

"I told you we should have taken a dip in the lake." He looked back up towards Genma, sighing when he saw Yamato now standing by the other man's side with an unimpressed look. 

"I didn't think his sense of smell was that strong," Genma defended himself "i haven't seen him in 8 years. How am i supposed to know how good his nose is?"

Gai didn't require any further explanation. He had seen Kakashi react like this before, usually when he found himself having to deal with overwhelming scenes.

And there were very few things he could think of that Genma and Yamato did together to set off such a reaction, except for activities he would really rather not speak about in front of Genma's students. 

Instead, he simply reached up and buried his hand into Kakashi's hair, smiling when the other man curled in a little closer. He could just barely hear Kakashi sniffing him, his nose brushing up against his skin as he tried to cover every other scent around him with Gai's smell. 

"Weird…" he glanced up, chuckling when he saw Tenten staring at the scene that Kakashi had created. "Is...is he…"

"He's just overwhelmed." Gai smiled fondly "his sense of smell is quite strong, the smallest amount of any smell he hates can set him off."

"I am right here." Kakashi grumbled against his neck. 

Gai smiled "Mmmhmmm, you definitely are." He tightened his arms around Kakashi's shoulders, holding him a little closer.

  
  


* * *

  
  


Once they had gone their separate ways from Genma and his team for the day, having made plans to meet up the next day in the same place, Kakashi had wasted no time in convincing Yamato that a dip in the river was needed.

In reality, he had told him either he took the dip willingly, or he would shove him in the river himself. Either way Yamato was not going back to the cabin with Genma's scent still lingering on him. 

Yamato had tried to argue the situation, but both him and Gai knew he wasn't going to win. Kakashi had even gone so far as to promised they wouldn't have sex in the cabin anymore as long as Yamato was home, though gai didn't believe that for a second. 

He figured that was how he found himself in his current situation. Yamato off to the river for a quick bath had left them alone in the middle of the forest, and Kakashi had apparently decided it was the perfect opportunity to make sure they wouldn't be having sex at the cabin later.

Usually the open space around them would be a turn off for Gai, he preferred the cover of a nice warm building. He wouldn't be the one to say no to Kakashi though, especially when his boyfriend had started begging him. Getting down on his knees and mouthing at his dick through the cloth of his pants, whispering sweet words to Gai as he looked up at him with hungry eyes.

Really, only a monster would say no. 

Hence why he now found himself holding one hand up against a tree for support, Kakashi's arms and Legs wrapped around him, and his other hand on Kakashi's waist as he thrust up into him again. 

The only thing muffling Kakashi's screams was the fact that he had already sank his teeth into Gai's shoulder. Gai was just glad he had moved his shirt over before doing so, saving the fabric from being stained with blood. 

Kakashi's fingers tangled into his hair, undoing the braid he had made earlier that day in favour of gripping as much of Gai's hair as he could. 

It was a beautiful sight. Kakashi always let down his guards when they were in bed together, or in this case in the woods. He allowed Gai to take control and take care of him, leaving him to do nothing but enjoy.

Well, he definitely did more than just enjoy. The blow job he had given Gai to start them off was proof of that, but still. He definitely preferred letting Gai have control when they were making love. 

A soft growl against his shoulder told Gai that he had slowed down, something Kakashi didn't like him doing. He quickly made up for it by digging his nails into Kakashi's hip and thrusting deeper into him, chuckling when the other man screamed against his shoulder. 

"Beautiful…" he mused, releasing his grip on Kakashi's hip and rubbing soothing circles into the skin as a silent apology. "You're so pretty like this, Kakashi." 

A soft groan was the only response he got. A reminder that Kakashi didn't actually like the praise Gai gave him, even if Gai could see that his ears were going red. The first hints of a blush. 

"But it's true," he smiled, increasing his speed a little and groaning when Kakashi responded by tightening his legs around him and giving his hair a gentle tug "i love seeing you like this. Open and trusting. Letting me take control."

He knew Kakashi wouldn't move his mouth away from his shoulder. Doing so risked Gai hitting his prostate at the right moment and the forest echoing with his screams.

Yamato had never been wrong to complain about how loud Kakashi could be. The first time Gai and Kakashi had sex, Gai had been forced to stuff Kakashi's jacket sleeve into his lovers mouth in order to avoid waking up the rest of the Inn.

At home, Gai wasn't usually nice enough to muffle Kakashi's moans and screams. He loved hearing them, knowing exactly how he was making Kakashi feel with everything he did. The only exception he made was when he knew Yamato was trying to sleep.

Kakashi's hands traveled up his back, pulling his attention back to the present as they came to rest on his shoulders, nails digging into his skin while Kakashi moaned against his shoulder.

A smile pulled at his lips. "You close Love?" He whispered, brushing his lips against Kakashi's ear and chuckling when the other man shuddered "Are you going to cum for me? You know how much I love it when you…"

His sentence was cut off when Kakashi groaned against his shoulder, spilling between them and ruining the shirt that Gai was wearing. 

"Mmmm...so good love," he continued, bringing his hand down from the tree and burying it into Kakashi's hair as he continued to fuck him through the orgasm. "You're so beautiful when you cum."

Finally, Kakashi relaxed his jaw, allowing his teeth to move away from Gai's shoulder and replacing them with his tongue, licking at the small amount of blood that now stained his boyfriend's shoulder.

It was intoxicating, how much Care Kakashi took after he had come, always making sure Gai was ok. That he hadn't hurt him.

"Ka...kashi…" his head dropped to Kakashi's shoulder, a shudder ran down his back when his boyfriend moved his hands to his hair and started to tug on the long black strands gently. When Gai finally came, it was a lot quieter than Kakashi. A low growl in his throat as he buried himself deep inside of his love. 

His mind blanked for a moment after that, taking its time to restart before he could focus on the feeling of Kakashi's fingers tracing figures on his back. 

"Would you like down?" He asked, smiling when Kakashi responded by hiding his face in his shoulder and pressing a tender kiss to his neck. Kakashi never wanted down. If he could stay in Gai's arms forever he would be happy.

He had made that much clear in the first year that they had been together. every opportunity he got he would cling to Gai. 

"I would prefer if you got down," Gai turned towards the bushes, smiling when he saw Yamato standing there with a look of disgust "you two are hopeless."

"I don't think 'sleeps with Genma on the first date' gets to speak." Kakashi muttered against Gai's shoulder, not bothering to look up from his spot even as Gai started to slip out of him and took a step back. His legs finally released their grip on Gai's waist, dropping down to the ground to support himself while Gai reached down to collect their pants. 

"I'm pretty sure you two didn't even have an official date before you slept together," Yamato argued, watching as the couple pulled their pants back on. "You just decided you were going to have sex."

"That's...different," Kakashi argued, his attention focused on getting his pants back on "Gai and I have known each other since we were kids, you just met Genma like...a week ago."

Gai tuned out the rest of the argument. he didn't need to hear the different reasons each of them had to defend their first sexual encounter with the guy they liked. 

Instead, he focused on taking his shirt off. It wouldn't do any good to head back home in a shirt soiled in Kakashi's cum. It would be uncomfortable more than anything. 

"Oy, Gai." He looked up, just now noticing that Kakashi was a lot closer than he had been a minute ago. Usually when Kakashi was this close, he wanted one thing, and gai was always happy to Oblige. 

His hand cupped Kakashi's face as he leaned in close, pressing their lips together in a tender kiss. Kakashi, as always, immediately buried both hands into the long strands of black hair, his fingers tangling into the soft black locks. He wasn't sure why exactly, but Kakashi always seemed to love having his hands in his hair. 

"Why must I suffer with you two?" They both ignored Yamato's complaint, pulling away from the kiss slowly, though Kakashi didn't let him get too far. His hands stayed in his hair, carding through the long strands as his good eye focused on Gai "seriously, are we going to head home soon? You two can make love eyes at each other in the privacy of your bedroom, away from me."

“I’m sure you’ll more than make up for all the apparent torture we’re putting you through tomorrow,” Kakashi commented dryly, Finally pulling himself away from Gai and taking a step back. “You can hardly keep your eyes off of Genma, after all.”

“Maybe I’ve been watching how you interact with your boyfriend for too long,” Yamato huffed, watching as Kakashi pulled his mask back over his face “I’ve only got one couple to learn from after all, and it’s not exactly a great example.”

“That’s not completely true,” Gai argued “Kaiya and Akari are another couple you could take pointers from. We see them about once a week.”

Kakashi loved Gai, he really did, but his boyfriend was dense sometimes. Kaiya and Akari were almost exactly like them in every aspect except that Kaiya was a much more friendly and sociable person that Kakashi himself. Otherwise, the relationship dynamics were exactly the same. It’s why the four of them got along so well, and why Yamato always dreaded those moments he knew Kaiya and Kakashi would be in a room together. 

Yamato’s only two reliable sources of information on how relationships worked, were both ridiculous and hopeless. Kaiya adored clinging to Akari almost as much as Kakashi loved sitting on Gai’s lap, and that wasn’t even touching on the subject of ‘love eyes’. He was certain if they were to ever have a competition over who could look at their significant other the longest, it would be a never ending draw. 

“Ya...we’re not going to take that as a better example,” Yamato sighed “Come on. I still have to feed fluffers.”

“I regret ever bringing you home a cat.” Kakashi sighed.

“No, you regret calling me ‘fluffers’ and giving me a name for the cat you brought home,” Yamato corrected his friend “the only reason you regret bringing fluffers home is because now Pakkun prefers sleeping with her instead of you.”

“Alright,” Gai stepped between the two of them, laughing when Kakashi glared at the younger man past his shoulder “let’s go home before you two decide that murder is an appropriate solution to your little argument.”

“I would never murder Tenzo,” Kakashi huffed “i would only maim him.”

“That’s not a better option.” Gai argued, sighing when his boyfriend simply closed his eyes in a poor attempt to fake a smile before disappearing into the trees. 


	17. New Mission

Morning training had never been Kakashi’s favorite activity, but somehow it had become even worse when Gai was no longer training with him but instead had his attention focused on training Genma’s team of Genin twice a week while Genma was off doing things with Yamato that Kakashi didn’t even want to think about.

It had already been two months since Gai had finally gotten his first opportunity to train the brand new shinobi, and where Kakashi had thought his enthusiasm for being a teacher would die out over time, it instead got stronger by the day. Gai could never stop gushing about the Genin’s skills and determination, especially when it came to Lee. He had even gone so far as to find a bright green pair of spandex that matched his old one’s, which he presented to Lee as a gift during their next training session.

Kakashi would have been more embarrassed by his boyfriend's clothing choices, but it was just a little too enjoyable seeing the way Genma’s entire soul seemed to die the moment he saw Lee donning the bright green spandex with pride.

Still, waking up early to meet the team at 9am for training twice a week wasn’t Kakashi’s favorite activity. He much preferred the days he could convince Gai to stay in bed just a little bit longer, and he definitely preferred not having to see Genma flirting with Yamato. The only reason he had refrained from being over protective and getting in between the pair, is because Gai had made him promise to be civil and nice.

Genma was their friend after all, and Gai was certain he wouldn’t do anything to hurt Yamato in the way Kakashi feared.

“You’re deep in thought,” his eyes snapped up, narrowing as he looked at the branch above him where Genma had appeared “what’s on your mind?”

“Currently? I’m wondering what you’re doing here when every other day you prefer to spend your time by the river fucking around with my favorite stray.” He huffed, watching as Genma smiled a lazy smile.

“Yamato is waiting for me, don’t worry about that,” It had hardly been a worry on Kakashi’s mind honestly, Yamato could go with some distance between himself and Genma. Maybe for once he’d come back and not smell like he had just been fucked so hard he forgot how to bath himself. “I actually have a letter for you.”

That itself was alarming. Very few people had any reason to be sending Kakashi any letters, and the only person he could think of was someone Gai wouldn’t be happy having contact with him.

Still, he had made a deal in order to get Gai his chance to train his favorite new team of Genin, so he wasn’t exactly allowed to say no to a letter from Lord Third. 

He held out a hand to accept the letter, and as soon as the small piece of paper was in his hand Genma was gone. It took all of his energy not to think about what exactly Genma was on his way to do. instead, he focused on the small piece of paper now laying in his hand.

it didn't take a genius to know that whatever the mission was, it wasn't going to be easy. Lord Third wouldn't waste his time out sourcing a simple mission to him. He had shinobi of his own in the village capable of doing any mission from D rank to B rank without issue. If it was something the required Kakashi's particular skill set it was at least A ranked, if not S ranked. 

Gai was not going to be happy. 


End file.
